Homemade Maple Syrup
This homemade maple syrup is simple and easy to make and costs a heck of a lot less than store-bought pure maple syrup.
Syrup. The great conundrum of my breakfast life. Between this oatmeal pancake mix, simple french toast, and waffles, we eat hot breakfast nearly every morning of the week.
For years I’ve been agonizing over our syrup solution. Which makes me even grumpier in the mornings than I already am.
I can’t bring myself to use the thick, pancake syrup from the store because it is laden with additives and high fructose corn syrup.
That leaves me with pure maple syrup or homemade (or begging our neighbor who taps his own maple trees for some of his precious liquid gold he’s boiled down himself!).
For the last year I’ve been buying pure maple syrup from Sam’s Club, choking down the high cost every time but lately, in an effort to shrink our grocery budget a bit, I’ve had to give it up.
Other homemade syrups I’ve tried are decent but what holds me back from adoration is the film that forms on top of the syrup (with many of the buttermilk recipes) or the fact that they have enough corn syrup in them I might as well be buying the stuff from the store.
I want a maple look-alike without the high cost of pure maple and without the other junk. Is that too much to ask?
Ok, enough with my complaining, on to the solution! This homemade maple syrup is simple and easy to make and it tastes like…maple syrup! Hooray!
Because of the lack of corn syrup, it is on the thinner side, but that’s ok with my family because we have gotten used to the taste and consistency of pure maple syrup, which is quite thin.
This syrup is probably a tad bit thicker than pure maple. I worked out the nutrition facts on this syrup (mainly sugar content) a while ago when I was tweaking it and if I remember right, pure maple syrup has about 50g of sugar for 1/4 cup and this syrup worked out to be right around 48 or 49g of sugar for the same amount.
I haven’t bought pancake syrup from the store in years so I’m not sure how it compares. I’m guessing the “light” or “low-sugar” brands have less sugar – although beware of the processed additives in the mix.
I buy my pure maple extract from here. If you can find a brand locally where you live, even better!
Hopefully this homemade maple syrup will make you as happy as it has me! Has it converted me into a morning person? Ha! Not even close, but it does help me look slightly more forward to rolling myself out of bed to make breakfast for the fam.
Homemade Maple Syrup
Ingredients
- 8 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
- ½ cup honey
- 4 cups water
- 2 teaspoons pure maple extract
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a large 5-6 quart pot, combine the sugars, honey and water. Bring the mixture to a boil and reduce the heat to low so the mixture gently simmers.
- Cover the pot and simmer the mixture for 15 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and let it cool for 20 minutes before stirring in the maple and vanilla extracts. Let the syrup cool in the pot for another 40 minutes, or so, stirring occasionally, before filling jars/containers. Once the containers are filled, let them cool to room temperature uncovered.
- Store covered in jars or other containers in the refrigerator. It will keep for up to 2 months in the refrigerator. Gently reheat before serving, if desired.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: Mel’s Kitchen Cafe
109 Comments on “Homemade Maple Syrup”
Sorry, I commented, but I guess I was replying to another comment. So I’m commenting again! I know this is an old post, so hopefully you see this. I pinned this a long time ago and finally tried it. I halved the recipe and we enjoyed it a couple times over the course of a week (probably ate less than 25% of what we had). Now the rest in the container is a solid brick of sugar. Any advice? I’d love to give it another try since we hate store bought pancake syrup and pure maple is so expensive. Thanks for any help!
Hi Kate, hmmm, that’s odd! It’s been a while since I’ve made this but I don’t recall that happening before. Have you tried heating it up again over low heat to melt the sugar?
This isn’t maple syrup at all! Even the extract is fake and isn’t maple! You make home made maple syrup by tapping trees, collecting the sap and boiling it to a minimum of 66 brix. This can’t be called maple at all. Support PURE maple syrup and those who produce it by buying AUTHETICLY PURE maple, which is a bit expensive because of how manually intensive it is to produce and the equipment investment cost of the producers. http://www.sugartree.run
Call it anything but maple. Maple extract is fenugreek.
Call it Fenugreek syrup. That’s honest at least.
this is “Pancake syrup”…..not maple syrup
“Pancake syrup”…..not maple syrup
This was wonderful! Way better than store bought pancake syrups. We are trying to cut our grocery bill and I loved how all of the ingredients I had on hand already.
We will still use real maple syrup on occasion but this is a great alternative.
Well, I was going to just go to the store and buy maple syrup. .when my boyfriend said no..no..no..your syrup is better than any store bought, please don’t by the store brands…
So needless to say I was thrilled! Thank-you Mels kitchen for this recipe!
Thank-you,
Sincerely
Sandy
I messed up, I added the maple and vinallia with the sugar and honey. .do I need to add more after it simmers. .please help!
Hey,
Is it possible to make maple syrup using maple extract?
Absolutely not! This not maple syrup and should not be referred to as such.
Thank you, so much for this recipe! I’ve tried several other recipes and this is by far my favorite. .the flavor is spot on…I highly recommend anyone wanting to make Maple Syrup to take full advantage of this wonderful recipe. ..
Thanks, Sandy!
Here is the “syrup solution” I came up with years ago. It has these 4 benefits: (1) contains real maple syrup (2) reduces the cost by a third (3) increases the nutritional benefits and (4) it reduces the carbs:
1 1/2 cups maple syrup
+ 3/4 cup coconut oil (liquified MCT version) + 1/4 cup organic butter + 1/4 tsp. lecithin granules. Pour syrup in glass dispenser bottle and heat in microwave 1-2 minutes (hot but short of “boiling”), then add oil, butter and lecithin. Shake vigorously until blended well and lecithin granules have dissolved. If necessary, reheat 30 seconds and shake again. Voila! Rich, buttery maple syrup full of beneficial fats. Ummm!
You pansy sniffing, granola eating, tree hugging, yuppie get out of the syrup and go eat tofu
Thank you! This is a life saver.
Great recipe for delicious syrup! This has replaced the store bought syrup in our house. Loved by myself, my husband, and our 3 young adult children – highly recommend!
For this recipe you use Cook’s Pure Maple Extract….I only have the KAF Natural Maple Flavor (which you use for other recipes). What is the difference between an “Extract” and “Flavor”? Would I use the same amount?
The King Arthur Flour maple flavor will work just fine – I’d probably use the same amount as the maple extract.
Thank you!
Wow, this poor lady either has never tasted Maple Syrup or her taste buds are dead. It’s not even close.
Thank you for such a good recipe. I moved from Ohio last year (Geauga County – maple syrup country!) and can’t get my beloved maple syrup any longer without paying a large fortune for it. So I found your recipe online and have been making it this way. Only change I made was to cut the white sugar back by 1 cup. First batch was a bit sweet for me. So tasty and you can barely tell the difference. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you so much for a great syrup recipe, just made it for the first time.
Taste so YUMMY. Thanks again for taking the time to share your wonderful recipe.
Linda
Thanks to posts in the comment section, I was able to get rid of crystallized sugars! I’ve had them with every batch I’ve made until I learned not to stir the syrup. Now there’s no crystallization. Thanks!
Mel, have you posted any recipes for flavored syrups like blueberry or strawberry? I did a quick search and I didn’t find any right off, but I just wondered if you’d made them.
I haven’t posted any official recipes, Caitlin – I’ve gotten to where I just throw some frozen berries in a saucepan with a bit of water, sugar, lemon juice and cornstarch and let it bubble until syrupy and then blend it up. Sorry I’m not more help!
My kids and husband love this syrup!! I can’t make it fast enough! I’m not a fan of syrup (I know I’m weird) but according to them, it’s the best they’ve ever had. THANK YOU!!!
I know this is an old post, so hopefully you see this. I pinned this a long time ago and finally tried it. I halved the recipe and we enjoyed it a couple times over the course of a week (probably ate less than 25% of what we had). Now the rest in the container is a solid brick of sugar. Any advice? I’d love to give it another try since we hate store bought pancake syrup and pure maple is so expensive. Thanks for any help!
Also, I believe this is perfectly safe for canning because of the high sugar content.
I made this last night & I will admit to being skeptical. After making it, my family tasted it & deemed it worthy. It tastes like the syrup I buy at the store. Thank you for this recipe. It’s a keeper!
I love the taste and it’s so much more healthier than store bought! I feel like we almost tapped a tree for it! 🙂 Thanks, once again!!!! I don’t know how many times I am going to write, ‘Great recipe!’….it’s getting redundant….will need to find synonyms, like, ‘Superlicious!’ Love it Mel! (How lucky am I that I get to live so close to you???!!) I live near a rockstar people!!!! 🙂
Hi! I make syrup with Mapleine most of the time. But why do you have to keep this kind in the refrigerator? I always have, but do you NEED to? Other articles say only real maple syrup needs to be refrigerated…what do you think and why?? Thanks.
Mary Ann – good question. I keep it in the fridge because it seems like the safest option. And probably because I always keep my pure maple syrup in the fridge. No rhyme or reason for me other than I’ve always done it that way and I feel better about keeping it cool.
In this recipe you do not need to use brown sugar. Just add an additional cup of white sugar and 1-2 tablespoons molass. Brown sugar is white sugar with molasses added. Any recipe that calls for brown sugar can be exchanged with white sugar and 1-2 tablespoon molasses per cup. Depending on light or dark. This does NOT work well when making crumb toppings, etc.
Halved the recipe this morning and it is VERY sweet but will try it again after it sits in the frig overnight as that might help the flavors marry. The best thing we have found so far for pancakes,is adding 2 T of water to 1/2 C of jam,stir and warm it gently in the microwave. It is delicious on pancakes and waffles and not as sweet as syrup.
SO good FOr the PEople ANd Good For THe Heilth
Bottom dollar has pure maple syrup for only five bucks
You have redeemed yourself after those super disappointing oven-baked baby back ribs! 😉 (I think I’m the only person who didn’t like them.) Made this syrup today, and while I haven’t tried it on waffles, pancakes, etc, just eating it off the spoon, I think it’s a keeper! It is so much sweeter than store-bought, but also SO MUCH more cost-effective! That’s what I love about it the most. Honestly, I don’t care about which is “healthier” because it is syrup-it’s not supposed to be healthy! Thanks for the great recipe 🙂
Our family does what we call ‘a cup a cup a cup’ syrup. It’s one cup white sugar, one cup brown sugar and one cup water. Bring the three ingredients to a boil for a minute while stiring. Take off the heat and add a tablespoon of butter (prevents the crystals from forming). It is a runny syrup but it soaks right into pancakes. My girls prefer this over store bought or even maple syrup.
We add maple flavoring to agave nectar, and it tastes great and is so simple–no extra ingredients needed.
Made this last night following Vivky’s suggestion of not stirring it after combining the ingredients and only small amt when adding the flavoring. and it hasn’t turned to crystals yet! Now I only wish I had made more than a quarter batch of the recipe. Thanks for the recipe!
Vicky – thanks for adding your comment about the crystallization. My last batch turned to all crystals and I had no idea what happened. I love that less stirring is better! I’m going to try that right now! Our family loves breakfast for dinner!
I’ve made this recipe at least 3 times since you posted it (it took me a while to get to it) and I think it’s great. I haven’t bought the real maple extract; I just use maple flavoring, which is fine for who it’s for (as my husband says).
I just wanted to add a little comment about my experience making this. My first batch started out fine but gradually turned to crystals in the fridge. Some time later I was reading a candy-making book which talked about sugar and syrups and such and I learned that if you stir it while it’s cooking (which you don’t specify not to do, but I should have known from another recipe I have used) that it causes the sugar to crystalize. I must have stirred it after it came to a boil that first time, so the next batch I made sure not to stir at all after initially combining the ingredients and it lasted a long time in the fridge with absolutely no crystals forming.
Sorry for the long story, and thanks for sharing another keeper of a recipe!
Vieve – I agree that the flavor of this syrup develops more fully overnight. I’m glad you liked it enough the second day to make it worth it.
This is really good! Better than store-bought pancake syrup, for sure. Strange phenomena though; I made this in the afternoon and we had pancakes for supper. It tasted like thick sugar water. I was SO disappointed, but decided we’d use it anyhow. The next day, I tasted it and it had developed the maple/vanilla flavor! Amazing! Has anyone else experienced this? I will be making this now instead of buying pancake syrup, while still keeping real on hand for recipes and special occasions — Sundays 🙂 Thank you for another great recipe. (And yes, I bought the Cook’s Real extract)
Mel-I am making your slow cooker brown sugar maple ham for Easter. I’ve made it before with store-bought pure maple syrup, however, I just received my pure maple extract in the mail to make this syrup. Could I use this syrup for the ham or would it be better to buy the pure maple syrup from the store? I’m basically wondering if it’s the same thing.
My 4-year old wanted pancakes (your oatmeal mix) for breakfast, but we were out of syrup. I whipped up a half-recipe of this & served pancakes for lunch. My boy ate 8!!! We’re healthy like that. Ha. Anyway, I’d say it was a hit!! I ate 2 so I could check out the syrup & I thought it was excellent!! Thanks!
I made a 1/2 recipe of this over the week and really like it. I did feel that the vanilla flavor was too overpowering but the more I thought about it the more I realized it was probably because my vanilla extract is a higher quality than the mapeline that I used. A few extra drops of the mapeline will solve the problem until I use up what I’ve got on hand and I’ll get the good stuff next time. My daugher has a serious addiction to dutch babies so this will save me bucks. THANKS!
My husband and four kids love this syrup. I was buying pancake syrup before we tried this recipe because real maple syrup is too expensive for how much we go through. My family loves the flavor of this syrup and they say it’s way better than store bought stuff. Thank you for another great recipe.
Vieve- the recipe works just fine halved!
How does it work halved? I don’t think we could eat it all in two months. Looks fabulous so I want to try! Will be calling my specialty store in the a.m. to see if they have the pure maple extract, otherwise thank you for giving a source!
Rhonda – that is strange that the syrup turns to sugar even before the boiling step is over. I’ve never had that happen, so I’m not exactly sure why but you may be on to something with it getting too hot. Can you bring it to a boil then turn the heat down to a gentle simmer, cover the pot, and simmer for 15 minutes? I’d try cooking it at a lower temperature and see how that goes. It isn’t an overly thick syrup so don’t be distressed if it still seems pretty thin – it’s slightly thicker than pure maple syrup but not much.
Hey just a question I have tried and tried to make this and it either turns sugary or is extremely runny. After it comes to a boil I turn it all the way down to simmer the 15 min I do have a gas oven so maybe it gets to hot? The first time I made it it turned to sugar before the 20 min were up so the next time I only brought it to a boil and then turned it off. Then it was really runny. I’ve tried at least 6 times (varying the simmer time) and just can’t get it how you describe it. Any ideas? I really hate what the store bought stuff has in it so I’d love to figure it out. Thanks
I stopped buying store syrup because of HFCS but my kids revolted at pure maple syrup since they were so used to the store stuff. They can’t tell the difference between this recipe and the store brand- thanks a million! I don’t know your thoughts on agave, but I used it as a substitute for the sugar- it has the same calories per Tbsp, but you only use half as much because it is sweeter. However, agave is also expensive so it defeats the puropse of making syrup to stretch a dollar.
Jessi – yes, I think you could leave out the honey. If you aren’t opposed to using corn syrup, you could substitute that, as well, but I don’t think it would suffer from leaving it out. It doesn’t really act as a thickener as much as a balance of flavors/sweetener.
Melanie, I tried making this and I must say how impressed I was with the look and consistency it has compared to regular maple syrup. I would never be able to tell the difference! The only thing was that all I tasted was honey. I’m not a big honey person, so I’m wondering, do you think the recipe would work without honey? Or perhaps something else? I know that honey has a consistency to that of syrup, just a little thicker, so I afraid if I omit it, the syrup won’t turn out so well. Do you have any suggestions? I did downsize your recipe, and ended up using 1/4 cup I think. I’m desperate to make a maple syrup recipe work – I hate to buy store syrup! 🙂 Thank you!
I had to give this recipe another try. The first time a made it I don’t know what I did wrong but the entire thing went rock solid before I even had cooled it the first 20 minutes. This was a few months back and I rushed onto the comments to see if anyone else had the same problem-nope! It was just me! 🙂 So this time I followed every word of instructions and it turned out perfect (still don’t know what I did the first time around). I LOVE how it has the rich true maple flavor and not the watered down maple flavor my other recipe has. Thanks a bunch Mel!
This is delicious! I was looking for a homemade syrup with better, more complex flavor than the traditional water+sugar+mapleine syrup, and this is it! I did add 2 Tbsp cornstarch (stirred into the sugar) to make the syrup a little thicker. Thank you!
Oh my. This stuff is amazing. My 5 year old and I kept eating spoonfuls of it and even heated up a pancake at 3 pm to test it out. What a great way to save money…I have never bought pure maple syrup because it’s so expensive. Now there’s no need! Thank you for an awesome recipe. I am already looking forward to waking up tomorrow! (and thanks for the tip on where to buy pure maple extract….I found mapleiene and imitation maple extract easily but I wanted the pure stuff. I ended up getting it from cooks and got some pure vanilla paste while I was there….)
This sure saves money than buying a bottle at Sams club. Thanks for this!
Mrs. Butterworths from Costco has 37 grams of sugar. I can’t wait to try this. Te pure maple syrup is so expensive.
What a cool idea! Maple syrup is so expensive, but I am with you on the corn syrup and other garbage in generic “pancake syrup”.
(My husband and I went to high school with your sister Emily and I came across your blog from her blog–I love your site! I’m a vegetarian, but a lot of your recipes are easy to alter and give me some new ideas in my recipe rotation.)
We were at a sugarhouse last month for a field trip for my daughter’s school and they were talking about how fabulous the yield has been this year. Last year was a terrible year for maple syrup in New England (which I think is the primary source). So while I appreciate the need to cut costs and I am sure the recipe is fabulous (as they all are, my six year old said today “I know why we all love Mel so much!”) look for the cost of the real stuff to drop this year.
I bought maple cream for the first time this year (on said field trip) and am *loving* spreading that onto all kinds of bread products.
Okay, Mel, I tested out some changes. Here’s what I did, I cut out some of the sugar and then replaced some as well with honey since it is sweeter:
4 cups white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup honey
4 cups water
(extracts stayed the same)
I thought it was still plenty sweet and all my kids ate it up no problem-o on their pancakes. I did think it lacked flavor but definitely not sweetness. But to be fair, I haven’t made it before the way you posted it so I can’t give a comparison. I might try adding a touch more maple flavoring next time because I can’t imagine the sugar would effect the actual flavor. I also thought of subbing in sucanat or evaporated cane juice for the sugar, but at that point, cost-wise I’d be better off just buying the real thing 🙂 You could sub raw sugar but health-wise it’s not much better.
We make this all the time, since I’ve married my husband, I haven’t bought syrup. We also make a coconut syrup that is super fantastic over cheese waffles! We love it! I’ll have to find the recipe and send it over!
that stuff on the grocery store shelf labeled ‘maple syrup’ is a travesty. corn syrup with a hint of maple flavoring does not maple syrup make. thanks for this yummy recipe, mel–pancakes are not complete without REAL(ish) maple syrup.
Wow, great substitute! I esp love that it doesn’t have any corn syrup in it.
This is one of our favs:
Nutmeg Syrup
1 cup sugar
2 TBS all purpose flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
2 cups cold water
2 TBS butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and water until smooth. Bring to a boil, cook and stir for 2 mins until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla. So yummy! But I will definitely be trying your recipe as well! I am rather picky about my syrup as well. 🙂
I feel like I should give you my first born or something, because you’ve been a major part of my family’s meals for the past year and a half. I found you through a friend I think, and I use your site weekly for menu planning. I have found so many recipes that our family loves, and have a million more I want to try. I tell everyone I ever talk to about food with you. So there you go–a year and half of great recipes, and I’m finally commenting!
We tried this tonight and really loved it. My husband converted me years ago to making our own syrup, and now I can’t stand the store bought stuff. The only problem is that I don’t really LOVE his family’s recipe either, so this was great. We both really loved it, and it will definitely go with the others that have become staples.
THanks!!
Hooray for an awesome syrup recipe! Pretty sure I owe you my first-born child to repay my debt of gratitude for this recipe.
I am sure you have tried this, but our low sugar syrup alternative is to put some frozen berries in a pan with a couple of tablespoons of sugar and cook until syrupy. Maybe this would get expensive if I was cooking hot breakfast that often!
I have always wondered if you could make homemade syrup. This looks great. I am going to have to try it. Thanks!
Great idea, I could do so many healthy versions with this 😉 I have maple extract too.
Hi Mel,
You have helped me with many dinnertime dilemmas. Thank you. So your comment about wanting to cut back even more on your grocery bill made me wonder. Since you clearly cook a lot from scratch, I have always assumed that you already save a lot of money. Do you feel that is true? Or is cooking from scratch becoming like sewing your own clothes? You’ll enjoy it more and get just what you want, but may not save money that way. I guess I’m curious if you have ever done a comparison or figured out how much you think you save. Just curious. It might be an interesting blog-post.
Thanks again,
Louisa
Hooray! I have been buying the pure also……no more for me. Thank you. We’ve eliminated everything artificial from my kids food and the behavior issues have almost dissolved completely. Thanks for the great, low cost solutions.
Great article! I have family sometimes makes their own syrup similar to this, even though I make 100% pure maple syrup every year. If your looking for affordable maple syrup, we sell ours for 11.00 dollars a quart (32 oz).
Thank You 🙂
Just wanted to give my perspective as a New Englander. I totally understand everyone’s frustration with the high cost of maple syrup, but people may not realize how much work goes into the finished product. The weather conditions have to be just right for sap to run, so there’s a very brief period of time in which trees can be tapped. Then, it takes more than 40 gallons of sap to = 1 gallon of syrup. Producers invest in expensive equipment that can only be used for this brief period of time and work around the clock until the sap is used up, and that’s it for the year. The maple syrup industry gives people an incentive to keep their beautiful old maple trees standing (only older trees are strong enough to be tapped) and preserves a tradition stretching back 100s of years to the Native Americans. While anything made with sugar and vanilla is probably delicious, I doubt there’s any recipe that can give you the true maple flavor. (No, I don’t work for the maple syrup association!) Pure maple syrup is one of the last 100% natural foods we produce as our ancestors did – I hope people will consider cutting back somewhere else (less steak, more syrup?)
I, too, grew up on 2 parts sugar to 1 part water and Mapleline and continued the tradition with my kids. They and their friends loved it. However, I haven’t seen Mapleline in any store in my area (San Francisco) for a long time, so have used maple extract. Does anyone on the Peninsula know what store I can buy it. I am excited to try this recipe, with the addition of honey, brown sugar and vanilla.
I too am not a fan on the bottled ‘pancake syrup’ from the store. I make a variety of homemade syrups from a strawberry syrup to a apple cider syrup to my own (corn syrup free!) homemade maple syrup. Homemade is so much cheaper and always tastes better too! I will have to try your recipe the next time I have a craving for pancakes!
So. WEIRD! My friend and I were JUST talking about maple syrup today (I have a recipe that calls for it) and how the sugary “fake” stuff is so bad for us. I’m excited to try this out!!
Just FYI – Mrs. Butterworth has 37 g sugar per 1/4 cup; but lots of HFCS (first ingredient, in fact).
If it’s a thinner syrup anyway, I wonder how it would be with slightly less sugar. The recipes I haved used in the past had a sugar:water ratio of 3:2 but they DID have corn syrup. Hmmm, I wonder if you could substitute more honey and less granulated sugar (or raw sugar for that matter)….
Mayme – I think you are on to something – and that being that this recipe is certainly adaptable. Let me know if you play around with it at all!
Grew up on homemade Mapleine syrup and I just can’t stomach the store-bought stuff. (Especially when people put it on COLD…EWWW!! Who DOES that????)
I’ll have to try your recipe. Like others, I’ve only used sugar, water & Mapleine and had the same issues with crystallization. I was surprised reading through the comments how many had never known they could make their own…especially with how easy it is!
If you don`t let it boil, but only heat it until dissolved, then you won`t end up with crystals.
I’m intrigued. We love real maple syrup here, but at $20 for a half quart, the cost is killing us.
I love the idea of using honey in place of corn syrup. I’m excited to try it. I have been making my own syrup for years. When I make a large batch I pour it hot into a mason jar and immediately seal with lid and ring. As it cools the jar seals. Then I store it in the pantry. I’ve even used small commercial jars (re-purposed jam jar) with a good rubber ring inside and a “seal button” When the “seal button is sucked down I know I have a good seal. This saves precious refrigerator space.
As for the sugar crystals…I just add a small amount of water to the jar, heat in the microwave until they are dissolved and add them to the next batch of syrup. No chiseling and no waste.
My mom used to make this when I was a kid (with Mapleline . . . of course, as a typical kid, I wanted “store bought” ’cause it’s what all my friends were eating! As an adult (with my mother gone) I continue to find more and more opportunities to appreciate all of the times my mother went out of her way to give us healthier (and sometimes more economical) ways alternatives. Thank you for the wonderful memory this afternoon.
Have you tried it with raw sugar? I’m a health nut and try not to use white sugar whenever possible. Just wondering, but I think it would work. I’m going to check your source for maple extract. It looks so pretty, I’ve made homemade syrup before with imitation maple extract, but yours looks like the real thing.
Jackie Brown – no, I’ve never tried it with raw sugar. Let me know if you give it a go!
Where did you find the cute glass bottle?
Laurie – I’m pretty sure I bought it at Target eons ago.
I have been making syrup the same way as Becki posted above (just sugar, water, and Mapeline). We love the taste, but have the same problem as Jill mentioned with the leftovers being crystalized. I’m excited to try this!
Never mind!!!! Found it!
Sounds interesting! Can you tell us how much this recipe makes (pint/quart/etc)? Thanks, Mel!
Mel, I have never heard of such a thing but I absolutely LOVE this idea! What a fun and easy thing to make for yourself, and cost effective too, since the good stuff is always so expensive. My husband and I are at constant odds over this – He prefers Aunt Jemima and I prefer practically licking the sap right off the tree… This will be a wonderful way to compromise, haha! I’ll definitely be giving this a shot. Thanks for sharing.
I have made homemade syrup for years, and my frustration is the crystallization that happens. This is a large batch! Will it store in the fridge without crystallizing. I have tried cooling it fast, slow and each time there is this hard sugar shell in the container that has to chiseled out with a knife. I hate that part! So What is your experience?
Hi Jill – I’ve had the same issue with crystallization now and again but for me, it only happens when there is just a bit of syrup left in the jar. When I make large batches of this syrup, I let the syrup cool in the pot for about an hour before pouring into mason jars. Then, I leave the mason jars uncovered until the syrup has cooled completely before covering and storing in the refrigerator. I’ve never had an issue with the syrup crystallizing that way. The only times I’ve gotten the sugary crystals is when there is only an inch of syrup in the quart sized mason jar and then sometimes I get sugary layer. Also, I make an effort to pour the syrup that I want warmed up into a separate liquid measure. And if there are leftovers of that warmed syrup, I don’t readd it to the syrup in the mason jar until it is completely cooled. I noticed one time when I warmed up all the syrup in the jar at once that when I refrigerated it again, it formed a crusty, sugary shell. Hope that helps a little bit!
I’ve been buying maple syrup at Costco too but with so many other must have fancy(expensive) ingredients on my shopping list I’m willing to give this a try. Thank you for an alternative without fake ingredients!
I know this recipe sounds too good to be true but you should try it. Our family has been making it for the last 25 years and my kids can’t stomach the store bought ones. Boil 2 cups sugar, 1 cup water and 1 tsp. Mapeline. (found in the spice section) Watch it closely as it will boil over. It’s ready as soon as it comes to a boil and thickens as it cools. Simple and amazingly delicious!
This is really impressive. For the last year I have been using the maple flavored agave. Not sure if it’s better, but I feel like it’s not quite as sweet as syrup.
Thank you for this recipe! I only buy 100% pure maple syrup from Costco and everytime I do I want to cry due to the cost. Our family finds the pancake syrup from the store bland and we try to avoid high fructose corn syrup. I am so excited to try this syrup! We too are trying to find areas to cut back on our grocery bill without sacrificing quality. Thanks again, we love your recipes!!
I’ve so enjoyed reading your blog /making stuff that I want to share one of our family recipes with you. It’s pretty much amazing, keeps well in the fridge (just needs a little re-heating) and takes morning starch enjoyment to a whole new level. Enjoy!
Apple Syrup
1 c. granulated sugar
2 Tbs. cornstarch
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
2 c. apple cider or juice
2 Tbs lemon juice
1/4 c. butter
Mix dry ingredients in a medium saucepan. Add juices and bring to a boil. Boil one minute, stirring constantly. Off heat, add butter and stir until combined.
That’s it! Thanks again for your blog – it’s helped me get out of a major cooking funk 🙂
Kellie, this sounds amazing. Any idea how long the Apple Syrup lasts in the refridgerator? Thanks!
Finally, a great alternative to pricey maple syrup but without all the funky ingredients! Thanks so much, Mel! You’re amazing!!
What a great idea! You’re such a smart cookie!! I can’t wait to try this!
Where were you YESTERDAY morning when my husband poured the last of the store bought syrup all over his pancakes and then had the nerve to ask aloud why I wasn’t eating any pancakes!!!!! In case you are asking, yes, he knew that we only had that small amount of syrup left (about 3/4 cup ….enough to share) , we discussed it and I wrote it on my shopping list. But I have recovered from that and will make this recipe today !!!! Thank you!
What a clever solution (no pun intended) to a sweet dilemma. Congrats.
Thanks for posting Mel! I love that sugary stuff from the grocery store, but I don’t like to give it to my kids, and I know it isn’t good for me either. We, too, buy the stuff from Sam’s, but I barely let anyone use it! I only use it for recipes and sometimes for pancakes. I’ll try this recipe out. I just asked my husband if we have any maple trees in our backyard…haha