I’m just going to say it, right off the bat. The first thing you are going to notice about this Pumpkin Spice Syrup is that you haven’t made it because it’s pretty.
Sure, I’ll probably put it up on Instagram but this is not what you would call ‘Instagram worthy’. In fact, it’s that particular shade of brown that reminds you of sewer water that has been left to congeal for several days.
It’s a mighty ugly looking syrup, but then you don’t make syrup for the way it looks.
But once you get a chance to smell it and, even better yet, taste it, then how it looks will seem inconsequential. You see, there’s something about the mix of spices with a little sugar and that earthy-sweet flavour of the pumpkin that reels you in every time. It’s powerfully tasty and one of the best seasonal flavours in the ‘verse.
So, once you’ve mixed up this delightful monstrosity, ‘what do you do with it?’, I hear you ask. This is the ideal syrup to mix into a whiskey sour or you might even find yourself adding it to an Old Fashioned – really, you can experiment with any drink that needs a little simple syrup or sugar.
As all of the ingredients are ground, you might be tempted not to strain this but take our word for it, strain this syrup before use. It gets rid of any pumpkin solids, which will be the things that will make it go bad quicker. Once that is done it should last a week or two in the fridge. This recipe makes a relatively small quantity, so it’s easier to use and store.
Pumpkin Spice Syrup
Ingredients
- ½ cup water
- ¼ cup brown sugar 40g
- ¼ cup sugar 50g
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- â…› teaspoon nutmeg
- â…› teaspoon cardamon
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoon pumpkin puree
Instructions
Put the water and both sugars in a pan and place over medium heat. Bring to a gentle simmer, stirring gently to ensure the sugar dissolves and doesn’t burn or stick to the bottom. Let the mixture simmer gently for around 3 minutes to thicken slightly.
Add the various spices, vanilla and pumpkin to the pan. Stir to combine and continue to warm over low heat, so that the mixture doesn’t boil, for another 3 minutes. Leave the mixture to cool in the pan before straining through a fine-mesh strainer to remove any coarser solids. Store in a bottle or jar in a cool place or ideally the fridge until needed.
