If you only make one coffee syrup, make this one. Vanilla bean syrup goes in everything: lattes, cold brew, iced coffee, hot chocolate and cocktails, including my peppermint espresso martini. Made with a real vanilla bean, it tastes nothing like the artificial store-bought kind.
Before The Boozy Mermaid, I owned a cocktail company, Southern Twist Craft Cocktail Infusions, and our syrups were made with erythritol. So I've made a lot of low-sugar syrup, and I can tell you real ingredients taste so much better than the store-bought bottles. Here's how I make vanilla bean syrup at home, both ways.
Classic Homemade Vanilla Bean Syrup
The regular version is just sugar, water and a real vanilla bean. No vanilla bean? A tablespoon of vanilla bean paste works beautifully and still gives you those little black specks.
Vanilla Bean Syrup Ingredients
1 cup water
1 cup granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped (or 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste)
Pinch of salt
How to Make It
Stir the water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves.
Add the vanilla seeds, the pod and the salt, and simmer for 2 minutes.
Take the pan off the heat and let it steep until completely cool.
Remove the pod (or leave it in the bottle for more flavor), then bottle and refrigerate.
Makes about 1 1/4 cups. Keeps 3 weeks in the fridge. In a hurry? Skip the bean and stir 2 teaspoons of pure vanilla extract into plain simple syrup once it's cool.
Low-Sugar Vanilla Bean Syrup (Erythritol)
This is where erythritol really shines. Its clean flavor lets the vanilla bean come through, so you'd never guess it's low-sugar.
Low-Sugar Vanilla Bean Syrup Ingredients
1 cup water
1 1/3 cups powdered erythritol (or 1 cup of a 1:1 erythritol blend like Swerve)
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped (or 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste)
1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum (optional, for body)
Pinch of salt
How to Make It
Warm the water in a small saucepan over medium heat and whisk in the erythritol until it's completely dissolved.
Add the vanilla seeds, pod and salt, take the pan off the heat and steep until cool.
Whisk in the xanthan gum, then remove the pod.
Pour into a clean bottle and refrigerate.
Makes about 1 1/4 cups. Keeps 2 weeks in the fridge.
Low-Sugar Sweetener Options
Erythritol is my favorite for syrups. It tastes clean and natural, it has no aftertaste for most people, and it lets the real flavors come through. Here's how the common options compare:
Erythritol (my pick): clean, natural flavor. It's about 70% as sweet as sugar, so use 1 1/3 cups per cup of sugar, or a 1:1 blend like Swerve cup for cup. Powdered dissolves best.
Allulose: the best texture of any sugar substitute and it never crystallizes. Use about 1 1/3 cups per cup of sugar.
Monk fruit blends: most are monk fruit plus erythritol, so they work exactly like erythritol. Check the label for a 1:1 ratio.
Liquid sucralose: works in a pinch, but it's very concentrated and adds no body, so the syrup will be thin. Sweeten to taste and use the xanthan gum.
Skip granulated Splenda here. It's great for baking but makes a watery syrup.
Why xanthan gum? Sugar is what makes regular syrup thick. A tiny pinch of xanthan gum gives low-sugar syrup that same silky body so it feels like the real thing in your coffee and cocktails. It's optional, and a little goes a long way.
How to Use Vanilla Bean Syrup
In Coffee
Vanilla latte: 1 to 2 tablespoons per 12 oz latte.
Vanilla sweet cream cold brew: whisk 2 tablespoons heavy cream, 1 tablespoon milk and 1 tablespoon vanilla syrup, and pour over cold brew.
Vanilla iced coffee or hot chocolate: 1 tablespoon per cup.
In Cocktails
Peppermint espresso martini: 1/4 oz rounds out the peppermint schnapps.
Classic espresso martini: swap plain simple syrup for vanilla.
Vanilla old fashioned: 2 oz bourbon, 1/4 oz vanilla bean syrup and 2 dashes orange bitters, stirred over a big cube.
How to Store Homemade Syrup
Store in a clean, airtight bottle or jar in the fridge.
Regular syrup keeps about 3 weeks; low-sugar syrup about 2 weeks. If it looks cloudy or smells off, toss it.
Erythritol can form crystals when it's cold. Warm the bottle in a bowl of hot water or microwave for a few seconds, shake, and it's good as new.
Label the bottle with the date so you know when you made it.
Vanilla Bean Syrup FAQ
Can I reuse the vanilla pod? Yes. Rinse and dry it, then tuck it into a jar of sugar to make vanilla sugar.
Vanilla bean, paste or extract? The bean gives the best flavor, paste is a close second with the same specks, and extract is the quickest. All three work.
Is the low-sugar version sugar-free? Erythritol has essentially no sugar or calories, so yes, it's effectively sugar-free.
Shake It Up at Home
Making cocktails with your syrups? Our handcrafted cocktail shakers are made in Charleston, SC and designed by a professional bartender. They make a great gift with a bottle of homemade syrup, too.