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Homemade Vanilla Coffee Syrup: With only a few ingredients, you can make delicious homemade vanilla syrup to flavor your coffee, tea, sodas, and cocktails.
MAKING FLAVORED COFFEE AT HOME: SO EASY!
Guys, I love Starbucks. I really do.
But if I’m being honest, I don’t love forking over a minimum of five bucks a visit for a latte. I mean – really, it’s just steamed milk and espresso.
I work from home, and if I’m keeping it real, that translates to yoga pants, t-shirts and Birkenstocks until at least 11 am everyday, so making coffee in my own kitchen is totally the way to go.
There are lots of flavored syrups you can buy at the store or from Amazon. But what happens if you run out and forget to buy more?
I know I do not want to be left without my iced coffee before I have to get the kids up and ready for the day. I am not about that life.
So instead I make my own vanilla syrup at home! Perfect for flavoring both hot or iced coffee and I promise that it couldn’t be easier.
If you make your own cold brew concentrate at home, you can grab your homemade vanilla syrup and have a whole coffee shop experience without getting out of your slippers.
HOW TO MAKE VANILLA SYRUP
This vanilla coffee syrup recipe couldn’t be easier to make. It only takes a few simple steps:
- Boil water, sugar and a vanilla bean for about 5 minutes
- Add in a little vanilla extract
- Let it cool, bottle it and store it in the fridge
You could even make a big batch of this homemade Vanilla Coffee Syrup and gift some to any coffee lover in your life! Pour it into a pretty bottle or jar and package it up with some locally roasted coffee for a special gift.
OTHER WAYS TO USE HOMEMADE VANILLA SYRUP
This vanilla syrup is great for flavoring coffee, but it can do so much more than that!
Stir it into tea or add it to sparkling water for a homemade vanilla soda.
You could even keep a small bottle of it stocked as part of your bar cart. Add it to pineapple vodka for a delicious cocktail, or use it to add some vanilla flavor to holiday wassail.
You could even add a splash to homemade strawberry lemonade.
I know you’ll find all kinds of ways to use this vanilla syrup and it will quickly become a recipe you make over and over.
FAQS
How do I store this vanilla coffee syrup?
Store the syrup in a jar or bottle in the refrigerator.
How long will it last?
Here’s the thing: Vanilla coffee syrup is basically a fancy simple syrup, and simple syrups don’t really go bad if they’re kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
In the recipe card notes I tell you that it will last for at least 2 weeks out of an abundance of caution. But if you don’t touch the syrup with your hands or any dirty utensils and keep it sealed in the fridge, it should last a really long time.
Be sure to discard the syrup immediately if you notice that it doesn’t smell right or if you see anything growing on the surface or the sides of the bottle/jar.
What if I don’t have a vanilla bean?
If you don’t have any vanilla beans handy, you can still make this vanilla coffee syrup. Simply omit the bean and use 1 tablespoon of vanilla bean paste in its place, adding it at the same time as the vanilla extract.
Homemade Vanilla Coffee Syrup
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups water
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 vanilla bean split in half
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, whisk together water, sugar, and vanilla bean.
- Bring to a boil and reduce heat.
- Simmer for about five minutes – the sugar should be completely dissolved.
- Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract.
- Once simple syrup has cooled, remove the vanilla bean and pour the syrup into a glass jar or bottle.
- Store in refrigerator.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
if i split this recipe in half do you think it would affect the consistency?
Hi Joy – This should be fine to divide in half. Happy baking!
-Jamie
WOW :) First recipe I tried and i’ll stick with it!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Kim! Thanks so much for stopping by to share your feedback. Happy baking!
Jamie
Hi. Can this be stored at room temperature? I’m thinking about making this for work and don’t have access to a fridge. Thanks!
Everything I’ve seen about storing homemade syrups has said to keep them refrigerated, so I have always stored mine in the fridge. You may be able to keep it at room temperature for a couple of days, but I can’t really say. Perhaps you can store it in smaller bottles and take just what you need for a day or two at a time. If you try it, let me know how it works for you. Happy baking!
-Jamie
Yes you can,. I have done it many times at the office.
I have vanilla bean paste. Can I use this instead? Would you make any changes? Thanks!
Hi Brenda-
I haven’t tried it with paste, but I think it would be fine. Let me know if you give it a try!
-Jamie
Have you experimented using Stevia? Wondering if I can substitute for the white and brown sugars? Thank you!
Hi Emily-
I have not tried this, but if you do, I’d love to hear how it turns out.
-Jamie
I decided to add a chai tea bag while cooking it and now I have delicious chai syrup!
That sounds amazing! Thanks so much for sharing.
-Jamie
Hello; We have tried to get responses but to no avail. Very sad.
Hi Joanne – You simply split the bean in half and toss the whole thing in. If you want to leave out the vanilla extract, per your other comment, that’s up to you. Some folks like an even stronger vanilla flavor, and many have made it as written and enjoyed it.
As to this comment: I get dozens of comments and questions on this website each day. I attempt to respond to each one personally, but as you can imagine, this can take quite a bit of time. Your comments were left within one minute of each other on the Friday afternoon of a holiday weekend. While this is my full-time job, I do have a family, kids, and other responsibilities that mean that I often don’t get a chance to respond to comments on the weekend (or even every weekday). Please remember that the bloggers whose recipes you are able to access for free are humans as well.
Happy baking,
Jamie
@Joanne, the recipe is as simple as simple can get.
@Joanne, you are so painfully rude and dense like a turnip. Don’t take out your own ineptitude out on people who couldn’t explain things any easier.
Great recipe- I didn’t have vanilla bean so I substituted it for a stick of cinnamon and then added a little extra vanilla as the author had suggested. Yum!
Yay! So happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe, Sharlee!
Im late to the party but I loved this. I sweetened it with erythritol and it feels like I’m getting away with cheating on keto haha.
So happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you so much for stopping back and leaving your feedback.
Happy Baking!
-Jamie
I need to make some of this for tea lattes!
Yes! It is soooo good in tea lattes.
I accidentally left the jar of syrup on the counter overnight, so it was unrefrigerated for approx 10 hours. Do you think it’s still ok to use? I saw another post about never refrigerating syrups, so I’m hoping it’s ok. Too good to waste! Thanks.
I think it will be totally fine. :)