Mama’s Homemade Syrup

*UPDATE – See this post about our new eating habits.(7/10/11)

This is the best syrup in all the ENTIRE world! Holy moly. I could drink it with a straw……but I’m pretty sure that would wind me up in the ER. Nix that. Anyway, it’s good stuff. Sometimes Barry’s mom gives it to me and then I give her a big hug. I think she’s buttering me up to make her a Coconut Pie. Butter me up baby! When I was growing up, my mom always made her syrup. No, we didn’t go out and tap a tree in the front yard…….she made it using sugar and flavoring. I loved it then and I love it still.

My sister didn’t eat it though. She would only eat Aunt Jemima. I think my Grandma had something to do with that……she would make Aunt Jemima talk. Grandma’s are really good for spoiling your kids so they only eat certain things. Just ask my cousin, Robbie. Yeah, I know it’s pure sugar and not the real thing, but it’s still yummy. And easy! Plus, it’s nice to know this recipe in case you run out of syrup and need something for your pancakes on a cold morning when you don’t want to run to the grocery store. You really should stockpile syrup though. It’s a necessity, like toilet paper. So, let’s learn how to make our own syrup just like my Mama makes!

All you need for this is brown sugar/sucanat, maple flavoring and water. That’s it. Astonished? I buy most of my extracts at JR’s Produce in Bristol. However, if you’re not local it’s a good idea to find a place where you can buy your extracts. Sure, you can get them at the grocery store but they’re usually more expensive. And notice that I use imitation instead of real…..that’s because I’m too cheap to buy the real stuff. Cheep, cheep, cheep! Imitation is just as good in my opinion. And my opinion is worth what you pay for it.

Boil some water. Everyone should be able to boil water. Are you listening to me Tracie Coppedge? See my new tea kettle? I got it for my birthday. It matches my kitchen walls. Thanks Mama! I like boiling water better than heating it up in the microwave. I’m always afraid my microwaved water will explode. It’s TRUE! Snopes says so. I really need to quit doing so much reading.

Measure your brown sugar/sucanat out into a glass bowl. We’re going to be pouring boiling water in there, so you don’t want to use something dinky. I like glass bowls for cooking as a general rule…….except my big ugly brown Tupperware mixing bowl. It’s so ugly only a mother could love it.

When your water is boiling, measure it out and pour it into your sugar bowl. Be careful because it’s hot! It doesn’t look hot in this picture, but I promise it is. Don’t add warm or hot water…..add boiling water. It has to be hot enough to melt the sugar. Sugar melts! That’s why I don’t go out in the rain. Ha, ha! Actually, I don’t go out in the rain because it makes my glasses all foggy. I need to get some wipers for those things.

Now, stir your mixture well. It will take a few minutes for all the sugar to dissolve, but keep on stirring. Stir it until there are no sugar crystals left. I still had a few left in this picture so I stirred it a bit more and then I was good to go.

When your sugar is dissolved, add the flavoring. It only takes a small amount of maple flavoring to get the desired taste. It’s a very strong extract. It smells so yummy! It doesn’t taste yummy though. I hate the dirty tricks that extracts play. Maple flavoring is one of my favorites. It’s delicious in oatmeal!

Your syrup is done! Yummy! Stick your finger in and taste it. On second thought, don’t do that because it’s hot. Very hot. You can use it right now for pancakes or you can let it cool and then store it in the fridge. I pour mine into a container that has a tight fitting lid. Canning jars work great. When you want to use it again, just nuke it a little bit to warm it up. I haven’t read anything about exploding syrup, so you should be pretty safe.