Syrups

Flipping through the latest issue of my favorite magazine, Gourmet, and I spotted a beautiful picture of a dish in an oblong pan that had blueberries and pecan halves on top. I quickly found the recipe, which turned out to be Baked Blueberry-Pecan French Toast with Blueberry Syrup. I decided right then and there that I must make this for our Memorial Day breakfast. Since it was a lazy Sunday, and I had no plans to go to the grocery store, I had to do a little improvisation on the recipe. I came up with a Strawberry version of the recipe. Well, let me tell you... it was fabulous. What impressed me the most was the fact that "I" made syrup. I've never thought of making syrup before now. There never seem to be a reason to make it. There are plenty of flavors in the grocery store already made for you. After making this syrup, I've realized it's the best accompaniment for French toast, pancakes, and special crepes. The syrup was warm. It smelled fantastic. It was perfect.

It was easy to make, too! The syrup I made started with pure maple syrup and sliced strawberries simmering for 3 minutes. The next step is draining the syrup through a sieve. Stir in a little lemon juice and you have strawberry syrup. The "harder" recipes begin with boiling sugar in a liquid until the sugar is dissolved. The syrup's flavor depends they type of sugar and/or liquid, and whether a fruit is involved.

In honor of my new discovery, I found more syrup recipes to make. I'm especially looking forward to trying the Praline Syrup; it will go great with my pecan waffles.

Enjoy!

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