Butter Pecan Syrup

This Butter Pecan Syrup is a delicious homemade syrup made with just 4 ingredients in less than 30 minutes! It's a delicious simple syrup for lattes but you can also use it in cocktails, mocktails, and more! It's perfect for fall and winter and it tastes just like the toffee nut syrup from Starbucks.

Jump to:

• Why You'll Love This Pecan Syrup
• Ingredients
• Variations and Substitutions
• Step-by-Step Instructions
• Expert Tips
• Serving Suggestions
• Storing and Make Ahead Options
• FAQs
• More Holiday Syrups
• 📖 Recipe

Why You'll Love This Pecan Syrup

Amazing butter pecan flavor - I was so excited when I first made this syrup because it tastes exactly like the toffee nut syrup from Starbucks! I find butter pecan and toffee nut to be very similar in flavor and absolutely perfect for coffee. This is now my favorite syrup and I know it will be yours too!

Better than store-bought - Most store-bought syrups are made with either natural or artificial flavors and some might also have preservatives, coloring, or other additives. Making your own at home with real ingredients means you know exactly what's going in and that it's as clean as it can be.

Perfect for coffee and more - This syrup is amazing in this Pecan Crunch Oatmilk Latte but you can also use it in cocktails like this Rum Espresso Martini or mocktails!

Ingredients

• Brown sugar - I like the light molasses flavor of brown sugar here but you can use regular cane sugar as well. Dark brown sugar will give you even more flavor but it may overpower the pecan flavor.
• Pecans - You need raw pecans for this syrup. You can use roasted pecans as well but I find raw pecans give you that true butter pecan flavor, plus it's less work!
• Water - You'll need water and sugar in a 1:1 ratio. Use filtered water whenever possible.
• Vanilla extract - You can use vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste interchangeably. If you're using vanilla powder or seeds scraped off a vanilla bean, you'll need much less because the flavor is much stronger.
• Butter extract - This one is optional if you want just plain pecan flavor but I highly recommend it for that butter pecan aspect. It really makes it taste just like toffee nut syrup from Starbucks, it's amazing!
• Cinnamon - This one is optional but I like to add a little bit of ground cinnamon at the end of cooking for a little more flavor. You can also simmer the syrup with a small stick of cinnamon instead.
• Sea salt - Adding a small pinch of fine sea salt enhances all the flavors and balances the sweetness of the syrup! I highly recommend either sea salt or Himalayan pink salt. Table salt is too salty and lacks any minerals.

Variations and Substitutions

• Roasted pecans - Use oven-roasted pecans for a slightly different flavor. Roast the pecans in a preheated oven at 350F for 8-10 minutes or until slightly golden and make sure not to burn them. No need to let them cool, just finely chop and add them to a saucepan with water and brown sugar.
• Cane sugar - If you don't have brown sugar, you can use cane sugar instead. You can also add 1-2 teaspoon of molasses to the cane sugar for the same brown sugar flavor.
• Sugar-free - If you want the syrup to be sugar-free, use a sugar substitute that can be used in a 1:1 ratio instead of white sugar. Keep in mind this will change the flavor of the syrup and it will have a shorter shelf life because sugar acts as a preservative in syrups.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Add brown sugar, finely chopped pecans, and water to a medium saucepan.
2. Bring the mixture to a simmer stirring constantly until the sugar melts to make sure it doesn’t burn.
3. Simmer the syrup for 10 minutes.

4. Take the syrup off the heat and let it cool for 10-20 minutes. The longer you let it sit, the stronger the pecan flavor will be.
5. Strain the syrup into a bowl or a large measuring cup through a fine mesh strainer.

6. Transfer the syrup to an airtight glass jar and store in the fridge until ready to use.
7. Close with a lid once the syrup has cooled down.

Serving Suggestions

• Coffee and lattes - This syrup tastes the absolute best in lattes. I make my lattes with oat milk and two shots of espresso like this Pecan Crunch Oatmilk Latte. It's also delicious in black coffee or any other coffee drinks.
• Cocktails - It's delicious in any coffee-based cocktail like this Rum Espresso Martini or this Chai White Russian (instead of chai syrup) It would also be delicious in any cream based cocktails like this Gingerbread Martini (instead of gingerbread syrup) or this Baileys Espresso Martini.
• Mocktails - The same that applies for cocktails, applies for mocktails as well. It's amazing in anything creamy or with coffee. Try it in this Espresso Martini Mocktail!
• On food - This syrup isn't just for drinks, you can also drizzle it on your food! It's amazing on pancakes, waffles, or French toast instead of your classic maple syrup whenever you want to add more flavor and make it extra special! Try it on these Christmas Waffles or these Gingerbread Pancakes.

Storing and Make Ahead Options

This syrup stores really well in the fridge so I highly recommend making it ahead of time, not right before you make your latte.

Fridge: Store the syrup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. Always use a clean spoon to preserve the freshness. The syrup may separate slightly as it sits in the fridge. This is ok, just stir it before each use.

Freezer: You can also freeze any leftover syrup in a freezer-safe container. I like using small 2-4 serving containers, measuring the syrup, and labeling the containers so I know how much I need to defrost every time. The syrup also never freezes rock solid because of the high sugar content. Because of this, you can also just use a spoon to scoop out some syrup into your cup and brew your espresso over it to defrost it.

FAQs

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📖 Recipe