This easy homemade Cinnamon Simple Syrup adds subtle sweetness and warm spice to all your favorite drinks. Think coffee, cocktails, and tea. It also makes a beautiful gift during the holidays!
Cinnamon Simple Syrup
Homemade Cinnamon Simple Syrup adds subtle sweetness and warm spice to all your favorite drinks. And it makes a beautiful gift during the holidays!
I like to swirl it into my morning coffee, afternoon tea, and our daughters’ favorite pumpkin cream cold brew.
And now that we’re into the holiday season, I’ll be adding it to spiced egg nog, a hot toddy, hot buttered rum coffee, and other festive wintry cocktails like this gorgeous white Russian – delightful!
This recipe could not be easier. You only need water plus 3 other ingredients – simply bring it to a boil, then let it steep until it’s rich with cinnamon flavor. It’s a regular in our fridge during the cooler months, so fun to add a little cozy warm spice to beverages!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Besides water, you’ll only need 3 other ingredients from your baking pantry!
- Brown sugar – This gives the simple syrup its sweetness. You could use granulated sugar, but I highly recommend the extra flavor and warmth that brown sugar adds.
- Cinnamon sticks – For rich, warm cinnamon flavor. Be sure to use good quality cinnamon sticks for the most flavor.
- Pure vanilla extract – This rounds out the overall flavor in a beautiful way.
How to Make Cinnamon Syrup
- Boil – In a small saucepan over medium heat, stir together water, brown sugar, and cinnamon sticks. Bring to a boil and stir until sugar dissolves.
- Steep – Remove saucepan from heat and cover. Let steep for 4 hours.
- Finish – Remove cinnamon sticks and stir in the vanilla.
- Bottle – Transfer the finished syrup to a pretty bar pour bottle or a common canning jar, with a lid. Store in refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.
Best Tips for a Stronger Cinnamon Syrup
If you like a deeper, stronger cinnamon flavor, here’s what I recommend:
- Use 4-6 fresh, high-quality cinnamon sticks.
- Break the cinnamon sticks into 2 to 3 pieces each, depending on how long they are.
- Leave the cinnamon sticks in the jar when you store it in the refrigerator.
If stronger cinnamon syrup is your goal, I recommend that you make this 5-7 days prior to using it, so the cinnamon sticks have more time to mingle in the simple syrup. Your cinnamon syrup will have a much deeper spiced cinnamon flavor!
Cinnamon Syrup Cocktails, Drinks & Gifts
Cinnamon syrup makes a gorgeous little homemade gift for any cinnamon lover.
Simply pour it into a pretty cocktail syrup dispenser or even a common canning jar. Then add a label.
Coffee, tea, and cocktail lovers will all appreciate this useful, delicious gift!
When it comes to cinnamon syrup cocktails, this spiced syrup would be a delightful addition to so many things. Swirl it into any drinks that would normally taste great with cinnamon schnapps!
As for other drinks, the sky’s the limit. Add this syrup to anything you’d normally enjoy with cinnamon spice.
- Coffee, latte, etc.
- Iced coffee
- Tea
- Pumpkin cream cold brew (our daughters are crazy for this Starbucks copycat!)
- Eggnog
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Cinnamon Simple Syrup
Ingredients
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup light brown sugar or use half brown sugar and half granulated white sugar to let more cinnamon flavor through
- 4 cinnamon sticks – use more for more cinnamon flavor and break each into 2 or 3 pieces for even more flavor
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the water, brown sugar, and cinnamon sticks. Bring mixture to a boil and cook until all of the sugar has dissolved, stirring fairly constantly, 1-3 minutes.
- Remove syrup from the heat and stir in vanilla. Cover and let syrup steep for 4 hours, longer if desired for even more cinnamon flavor. (See Note below)
- Remove the cinnamon sticks and transfer the syrup to an airtight container. Store in the fridge for up to 3 weeks. Add to cocktails, coffee, iced coffee, and tea.
This is SO good!!!!
My daughter loves a lot of cinnamon in her coffee. Me, not so much. This is perfect. I made it strong as suggested and let it steep before giving it to her.