Rich, homemade Buttermilk Syrup, made with creamy butter, sugar, vanilla, and buttermilk, is a must-have for your next breakfast or brunch!
Make any meal with pancakes or waffles feel extra special with the addition of decadent and easy-to-make Buttermilk Syrup! Whisk together butter, sugar, buttermilk, vanilla, and baking soda to create a topping that will wow family and friends and takes only minutes to make!
A New Breakfast Hero
We are fans of everything related to breakfast, so imagine my utter shock when I learned that not everyone loves maple syrup! Like, how do they eat pancakes?!? When I stumbled upon this Buttermilk Syrup recipe, I knew immediately there was more to breakfast than maple syrup and that this was the answer to my question. Buttery with caramel notes, this old-fashioned buttermilk syrup recipe is so quick to make, and as long as I don’t drink it right from the bottle, I have enough for a couple of meals when I double the recipe. Pancakes, waffles, French toast, pigs in a blanket, and more have a new best friend!
Craft a variety of syrups to impress everyone at brunch, such as spiced Apple Pie Syrup or sweet-tart Raspberry Pancake Syrup!
Other Recipes to Serve with Buttermilk Syrup
- There’s no need to try to fit everything on the stove-top when you can make perfectly cooked Bacon in the oven so easily!
- Treat the grown-ups to a flavorful brunch treat of Irish Coffee to make the afternoon feel a little extra.
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients: To make this syrup, you will need a stick of your favorite creamy butter, or more if you want to double the recipe. Pick up buttermilk at the store, or check out the tips section on how to make a substitute buttermilk! Don’t forget to set out vanilla extract, too.
Dry Ingredients: For this recipe, you will need granulated sugar and a small amount of baking soda.
How to Make Buttermilk Syrup
STEP ONE: Add the butter, sugar, and buttermilk to a medium saucepan with tall sides.
STEP TWO: Stir the mixture and bring it to a boil. Let the syrup boil for one minute, stirring constantly.
STEP THREE: Take the pan off the heat and stir in the vanilla extract and baking soda.
STEP FOUR: Continue to stir as the syrup becomes frothy and thick. Use immediately on pancakes, waffles, and more! Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.
Tips for Success
- The syrup will become quite frothy and rise, so ensure your pot is large enough to prevent the syrup from overflowing.
- The longer you stir the butter, sugar, and buttermilk, and allow it to brown before it boils, the more caramel notes the syrup will have.
- All out of buttermilk, or want to make your own? The easiest and most popular substitution is to mix 1 cup of milk with one tablespoon of lemon juice, stir, and let it sit for five minutes. The mixture is then ready to be used in any way that buttermilk is used!
- Store leftover syrup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three weeks. Reheat the syrup in the microwave to warm it again.
Can I change the flavor of buttermilk syrup?
The sweet buttery flavor of buttermilk syrup lends itself well to the addition of other flavored extracts and spices! In place of vanilla extract, you can substitute coconut, lemon, rum, or almond to create a variety of flavored syrups that taste amazing on everything! Include spices when you add the butter, sugar, and buttermilk, such as cinnamon, apple pie spice, or pumpkin pie spice, for a seasonal kick. This simple recipe is wonderful in so many ways, so whisk up multiple batches to enjoy on everything!
Why do I add baking soda to buttermilk syrup?
You might think that it’s weird that all of these buttermilk syrup recipes include baking soda, but rest assured, there is a very good reason. That reason is chemistry. Just as when buttermilk is added to other recipes, such as biscuits, the combination of buttermilk and baking soda creates bubbles and airiness, making the food lighter. The use of baking soda also balances out the acidity in the buttermilk, resulting in a flavorful tanginess without an acidic bite. The result of combining the two in this buttermilk syrup is a syrup that is wonderfully sweet and tangy, as well as being frothy and not cloyingly heavy.
Amazing Ways to Enjoy Buttermilk Syrup!
- Lemon Blueberry French Toast Bake
- Carrot Cake Pancakes
- Pancake Sausage Bites
- Perfect Waffles From Scratch
- Air Fryer Pumpkin French Toast Sticks
*This post originally posted on 05/03/2015.
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
Instructions
- To a medium saucepan, add the butter, sugar, and buttermilk. Place over medium heat and whisk occasionally until the sugar is melted and everything is combined.
- Bring to a boil. Whisking constantly, bring to a boil for 1 minute until the mixture becomes foamy.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat and whisk in the vanilla and baking soda. Keep stirring as it foams up until mixed together.
- Let cool slightly. Transfer to a serving container and serve over pancakes, waffles, or french toast.
Mara says
I just made this syrup today and sadly, I didn’t much like it. The baking soda was a strong presence in the sauce, over powering the flavor of the buttermilk. Also, the instructions are a little vaguely written and is too short a cooking time to get sugar to start to caramelize. I added 2 tbsp more sugar to the syrup to try and correct it and it tasted much better. In the future, I will add way less baking soda to this syrup. It should not be coming through the way it did.
Darci Laws says
My Mom used to make this! She would like holes in a carrot cake with a toothpick and pour it over, the syrup would seep in and make the most moist cake you can imagine! I think I will have to try it on pancakes. I wonder I can use maple extract instead of vanilla for the pancakes! Yummy!