- 1
- 5 mins
- 20 mins
Ingredients
- 1 cup diced fresh strawberries
- 3/4 cup strawberry puree (made from about one cup of fresh strawberries)
- 3/4 to 1 cup sugar (or 1/2 cup if you want a less sweet simple syrup)
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 tsp. orange zest or lemon zest (optional)
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract (optional)
- 2 tbsp. chopped, fresh mint, rosemary, basil or other herbs (optional)
- 1 tbsp. crushed cardamom pods (optional)
- 1.5 tbsp. balsamic vinegar (optional)
- NOTE: This Strawberry Simple Syrup recipe can be modified with various optional ingredients to suit your tastes. I recommend sticking to the basic recipe or using one optional ingredient per batch.
Preparation
Step 1
Preparation
Place the water, sugar and strawberry puree together in a medium saucepan. On medium heat, bring the mixture to a boil.
When sugar mixture reaches a boil, add the diced strawberries and any optional ingredients you'd like to include. Simmer until the mixture is reduced by about one-half and the strawberries are soft enough to press through a sieve. (This should take about 15 minutes.)
Pour, and then press, the mixture through a fine sieve.
Use warm, or allow to cool, then seal in a clean container and store in refrigerator for up to six months.
Add to taste in drinks like iced teas (such as Iced Strawberry Green Tea), lemonades, sangrias and fruit-flavored cocktails.
Alternately, if you already have plain simple syrup on hand, you can simmer two cups of it with ten to 12 diced strawberries for ten minutes, then proceed to step three.