This Blackberry Syrup Recipe is easy to make, and versatile too: it is wonderful mixed with iced tea, club soda, cocktails or mocktails, it can be a syrup to top ice cream or bread pudding. It is of course, perfect on pancakes and waffles. It also makes a tasty glaze for savory dishes.
Selecting the Berries
In our local markets blackberries are generally priced from $2.50 to $4.00 for standard packs, and up to $9.99 for organic offerings.
Whether you’re selecting blackberries at the market or growing your own, for peak flavor, choose blackberries that are dark, firm, and glossy. Avoid fruits that are mushy, moldy or shriveled.
For homegrown blackberries, they don’t continue to ripen after they are picked, so be sure they are ready. Blackberries that are ready to harvest are easy to remove from the stems. Once they start to ripen, the berries have to be picked every few days or you’ll miss them.
We grow two kinds of thornless blackberries, Arapaho and Natchez. We are frequently competing with wildlife for the ripe fruits, so sometimes we’ll pick a few with a fleck of red on them. Just a tiny bit is fine, but more than that and they won’t be sweet. See the red area on the berry in the photo? That’s too much red for me, but the squirrels were happy to have it.
Making the Syrup
Stir 2 cups of sugar into 2 cups boiling water until dissolved. It is important to stay with your pot when you make any type of syrup – sugar burns and boils over easily.
The berries will start to break down at around the 20-minute mark. At this point, reduce heat to low and use a spoon or potato masher to crush berries in pot. Then, continue simmering the crushed berries for 10 minutes.
Remove from heat, strain over a glass mixing cup or bowl to remove seeds. Press a spoon against the mix to extract all liquid.
Note that if you use a wooden spoon for this task, as I do in my photo, you might need to rub it down with a lemon wedge and/or baking soda to keep it from staining. I used this wooden spoon for this recipe for love and luck (it was my Mom’s), but you may want to use a stainless steel spoon instead.
At this stage there is usually around 3 cups of syrup. Return it to the pot and simmer it over low heat until syrup reduces by half, approximately 20-30 minutes. I let the syrup cool a bit before I handle it, then pour it into a bottle or glass canning jar.
Yield
Approximately 1.5 cups (16 tablespoons per cup).
Variations
This recipe in the same ratios will work with just about any berry.
This syrup can be combined with other ingredients to change it up. Stir it into yogurt and it’s a fruit dip. Add it to oil and vinegar and it’s a salad dressing. Combine it with a splash of Tamari sauce and a few tablespoons mustard and use it as a glaze for skewers with roasted vegetables and tofu. Once you make this basic Blackberry Syrup, your tastebuds and imagination will guide you.
If you enjoy this Blackberry Syrup Recipe, try this Herbal Simple Syrup, this Rose Simple Syrup or this Shiso Simple Syrup.
| Prep Time | 5 minutes |
| Cook Time | 50 minutes |
| Servings |
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- Stir 2 cups of sugar into 2 cups boiling water until dissolved. IMPORTANT: Stay with your pot when you make any type of simple syrup - sugar burns and boils over easily.
- Add berries, bring to boil, reduce heat to medium, cook until berries start to break down, around 20 minutes.
- Use a wooden spoon or potato masher to crush berries in pot, reduce heat to low, continue simmering or 10 minutes.
- Remove from heat, strain over a glass mixing cup or bowl to remove seeds. Press a spoon against the mix to extract all liquid. Return to pot and simmer over low heat until syrup reduces by half, approximately 20-30 minutes.
- Remove from heat and let the syrup cool a bit. Pour into a jar or bottle. Serve hot or cold. Store refrigerated.
