Ever wondered how to make Strawberry Syrup for drinks? It’s so easy! This is a great way to make all of your favorite drinks with a strawberry twist. From strawberry lemonade and Italian sodas to margaritas and lattes, this simple recipe will be in your pantry all strawberry season!
❤️ Why you will love this recipe
- Easy: All you have to do to make this easy recipe is boil the strawberries with the sugar, remove the strawberry pieces, add a little lemon juice and vanilla extract, stir, and cool. So simple!
- Quick: It’s ready in less than 30 minutes (other than cooling down).
- Simple ingredients: All I used for this recipe was strawberries, sugar, vanilla extract, and lemon juice.
- Healthy options: I like to use honey instead of regular table sugar for a paleo option with a little extra nutrition. You can also check out my sugar-free strawberry syrup recipe for a low-carb version.
- Use up strawberries: In the peak of strawberry season, we have so many strawberries in our house! Thankfully my kid eats them like there’s no tomorrow, but when they’re starting to turn a little, I love making this delicious strawberry syrup recipe. This is such an easy way to use up extra fruit!
- Great for kids: Depending on what kind of sugar you use, this can be quite a healthy option for kids! Opt for healthier sugar like honey if possible.
- So many uses: This sweet strawberry flavor is delicious in anything from strawberry milk and lemonade to drizzling a little syrup on porridge instead of maple syrup. You can even use it as a sweet and fruity pancake syrup. Click here for more options!
🗝️ Key Ingredients & Substitutions
- Strawberries: For this sweet syrup recipe, I used fresh strawberries. You can also use other fresh berries or fresh fruit like raspberries, blueberries, or peaches.
- Sweetener or sugar: You can use either regular white sugar, or brown sugar, but I like to use honey as it’s a little healthier and tastes great in this fresh strawberry syrup.
- Lemon juice: A squeeze of fresh lemon at the end is so delicious! It really makes all of the other flavors sing. Lime juice also tastes amazing in this simple strawberry syrup recipe.
- Vanilla extract: This brings out the sweetness even more and adds a little bit of warmth to the taste.
- Xanthan gum (optional): If you like a thicker syrup, add a little xanthan gum to thicken it up. It will keep the syrup nice and clear without affecting the taste.
🥣 How to make Homemade Strawberry Syrup Recipe
1. Begin by chopping up the strawberries. They shouldn’t be too small, just in quarters or sixths.
2. In a medium saucepan add the strawberries, water, and sugar, and bring them to a boil over medium heat.
3. Lower the heat and allow it to simmer for 20 minutes.
4. Remove the pot from the heat.
5. Strain the strawberries with a fine mesh sieve over another pot, or use a slotted spoon to scoop out the strawberry fruit pulp.
6. Mix in a squeeze of fresh lemon and vanilla extract, and allow it to cool completely to room temperature before storing or serving.
🫙 Storage Instructions
Store in an airtight container like a mason jar for up to 2 weeks in the fridge.
🪄 Recipe Notes & Tips
- Water:sugar ratio: Just like regular simple syrup, the ratio for this homemade fruit syrup is equal parts water and sugar.
- Need to use this syrup, like, now? Help it to cool quicker by placing the pot in an ice bath and stirring it until it has cooled.
- Carefully strain the fruit: Do not press down on the fruit when you are straining it. This will cause the syrup to turn cloudy. It’ll still be edible but won’t be clear.
- Thicker syrup: If you want to make the fresh syrup even thicker, sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of xanthan gum over the strawberry syrup, turn the heat on, bring it to a boil, and whisk until the xanthan gum has dissolved.
🍓 Different ways to use this strawberry simple syrup recipe
- Iced tea for strawberry iced tea
- Strawberry lemonade
- Strawberry latte
- Strawberry margarita
- Mixed with club soda for a sparkling strawberry drink
- Strawberry milk
Top tip: freeze the strawberry syrup in an ice cube tray and add the cubes to drinks to keep them cold without watering down the flavor.
❓ Looking for a sugar-free version?
Try my Keto Strawberry Syrup recipe! You can choose between 3 different healthy sweeteners to curb your low-carb sweet tooth!
😋 More drink recipes you will love
- Keto Simple Syrup
- 3 Ingredient Chocolate Milk
- Butterfly Pea Iced Latte
- Crockpot Mulled Wine
- Spiced Cranberry Gin Recipe
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📖 Recipe
Strawberry Simple Syrup Recipe (for drinks)
Ingredients
- 8 medium strawberries stems removed and sliced (about 1 cup)
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup sugar or honey
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- A squeeze of fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Begin by chopping up the strawberries. They shouldn't be too small, just in quarters or sixths.
- In a medium saucepan add the strawberries, water, and sugar or honey, and bring them to a boil over medium heat.
- Lower the heat and allow it to simmer for 20 minutes.
- Remove the pot from the heat.
- Strain the strawberries with a fine mesh sieve over another pot, or use a slotted spoon to scoop out the strawberry fruit pulp. Do not press down on the strawberries. This will turn the syrup cloudy.
- Mix in the vanilla extract and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and allow it to cool completely to room temperature before storing or serving.
This was delicious!