By Jennifer Provenza at Good Food From The Heart
Sweet and tart, spiced and citrusy. This warm and cozy sugar free Raspberry syrup recipe goes perfectly on pancakes, waffles, French toast, and even ice cream. Much lower sugar than maple syrup.
Updated 4/7/2022
Whole Foods Plant based, oil free, sugar free, gluten free, soy free, nut free
Sugar Free Raspberry Syrup
You are going to love this syrup! As a kid, I remember loving trying all the different fruit flavored syrups when my family went out for pancakes at IHOP. As fun as that was, those syrups were all so sugary and cloyingly sweet. This syrup, on the other hand, is fresh and tangy and has way less sugar and calories than maple syrup.
Ingredients
- Frozen Raspberries: Feel free to use fresh raspberries if you prefer, but frozen are a lot cheaper and don’t go moldy so I usually use them.
- Liquid Stevia or Maple Syrup: The liquid stevia will give you a completely sugar free version. I like Sweetleaf brand. The maple syrup will still be refined sugar free and will give you a sweeter result. Even using the maple syrup, however, the raspberry syrup will be much less sugary and caloric than straight maple syrup.
- Vanilla Extract: The vanilla extract adds a delicious richness of flavor.
- Orange zest: The orange zest adds a lovely tangy fresh flavor.
- Cinnamon: The cinnamon adds to the sweetness and makes this syrup perfect to use over the holidays on a cozy morning.
Substitutions
- For the raspberries: You can actually use lots of other fruits to make this syrup (blueberries, peaches, strawberries, etc… but raspberries are my favorite to use.
- For the stevia or maple syrup: Feel free to substitute a different unrefined sugar or sugar substitute if you prefer.
- For the vanilla extract: This recipe also tastes great with almond extract or even rum extract. Yum!
- For the orange zest: Lime or lemon would be a fun substitute.
- For the cinnamon: Nutmeg would also be yummy in this recipe.
FAQ
You bet! It is suitable for vegans and diabetics too (if you use the sugar free option).
This syrup goes great on pancakes, waffles, French toast, or even drizzled on oatmeal or ice cream. Yum!
This syrup can be frozen indefinitely or kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.
You also could preserve it by canning if that’s something you enjoy doing or you wanted to make a large batch and/or give it as gifts.
How To Make It
Start by putting the raspberries, water, orange zest, and cinnamon in a small sauce pan and cooking over medium heat until the raspberries have all broken down. If you are using maple syrup, add it now. The maple syrup version will (obviously) still contain sugar, but it will have no unrefined sugar and will certainly have less sugar than straight maple syrup. If you are using stevia, wait until the end to add it.
Next, you will want to strain out the seeds, using a strainer over a bowl, otherwise the syrup will be chock full of them and that isn’t very appetizing. You will be left with a thin, dark red liquid. Return this to the pan. Bring to a boil. Mix the arrowroot powder with the water in a small bowl and whisk until it is well combined. Add to the syrup and cook for about two minutes or until the syrup has thickened a bit.
You can add a little bit more arrowroot mixture if it is too thin or a little bit of water if it is too thick. At this point, add the liquid stevia, stir, and serve over pancakes. This also is great on my Caramalized Banana French Toast.
You can store this in the refrigerator for up to a week if you want to make ahead and can also freeze for later use.
Sugar Free Raspberry Pancake Syrup
Equipment
- small sauce pot
- strainer
- zester or box grater
- bowl
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries
- 1/3 cup water
- 1 teaspoon liquid stevia or 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon orange zest
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon arrowroot powder in 1/4 cup water
Instructions
- Put the berries, orange zest, water, cinnamon, and maple syrup (if using) in a small saucepot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, for about five minutes, until all the raspberries have broken down.
- Remove from heat and push through a fine strainer into a clean bowl, straining out all of the seeds.
- Pour the strained raspberry juice back into the pot. Return to heat.
- Mix arrowroot powder into 1/4 cup of water and stir until dissolved.
- Pour the arrowroot mixture into the saucepan with the raspberry juice. Return to a boil and cook for about two minutes, until slightly thickened. You can always add a little more arrowroot powder and water if it is too thin. You can add a little bit more water if it is too thick.
- Add the liquid stevia (if using) and stir. This version is fairly tart, so you can add more to taste.
Notes
Follow me on Instagram @goodfoodfromtheheart and Pinterest at Good Food From the Heart and Facebook @GoodFoodFromTheHeart If you make this recipe, post it and be sure to tag me! Or Pin to Pinterest and make later.
Leave a Reply