Image is for illustrative purposes only.
Heavy syrup is a concentrated sugar syrup made with two and a half parts sugar to one part water, with a little fresh lemon juice added to keep it from crystallising. Cooked until the sugar has completely dissolved, it cools to a clear, thick, glossy liquid that pours slowly from the spoon and keeps for weeks in the fridge.
It is a workhorse in cake making. Use it at full strength for glazing and for brushing fruit, or thin it with water, juice, coffee or spirits to make a soaking syrup for sponge layers. Because it is already so concentrated, a small batch goes a long way and you can adjust the strength to suit whatever you are moistening.
Ingredients
The weights in the recipe table below will yield the following 'weight per unit' and 'number of units'. If you would like to change the recipe to cater to a different 'weight per unit' and/or 'number of units',
you can use the Recipe Calculator Tool below the ingredients table.
Note: The Recipe Calculator Tool is available to subscribers.
Weight Per Unit: 710
Number of Units: 1
Unit Size: jar of syrup, about 640 g (roughly 500 ml)
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WEIGHT
(grams)
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ALTERNATIVE METRIC
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INGREDIENT
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IMAGE
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CONDITION
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A
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500 |
17.6 ounces
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Sugar
Sugar is the generalized name for sweet, short-chain, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. They are carbohydrates, composed of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. There are various types of sugar derived from different sources. Simple sugars are called monosaccharides and include glucose (also known as dextrose), fructose and galactose. The table or granulated sugar most customarily used as food is sucrose, a disaccharide. (In the body, sucrose hydrolyses into fructose and glucose.) Other disaccharides include maltose and lactose. Longer chains of sugars are called oligosaccharides. Chemically-different substances may also have a sweet taste, but are not classified as sugars. Some are used as lower-calorie food substitutes for sugar described as artificial sweeteners.
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B
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200 |
0.8 cup
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Water
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C
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10 |
2 teaspoons
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Fresh Lemon Juice
Fresh lemon juice is the juice squeezed from whole lemons and strained of seeds and pulp. It gives a natural sharpness and aroma that bottled juice cannot match, and roughly three medium lemons will yield the amount needed here.
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strained |
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710
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Recipe Calculator Tool
Using this tool, you can alter this recipe for your own requirements. Use the two fields below to generate new weights for the ingredients above.
STEP 1. Enter your Custom Weight Per Unit
The 'Custom Weight Per Unit' is already loaded with the weight per unit for this recipe but can be changed if required. If all you wish to do is change the number of units (or servings), just leave the current weight per unit.
STEP 2. Enter your Custom Number of Units
This is the number of units (or servings) you want this recipe to yield.
STEP 3. Click Calculate
The new weights for your adjusted recipe will be displayed in the table above.
Method
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STEP
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ACTION
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DETAIL
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CONDITION
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1 |
Prepare |
Have a clean, dry jar or bottle with a tight lid ready, and a pastry brush and a cup of cold water beside the stove. |
Jar clean and dry so the syrup keeps well |
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2 |
Combine |
Put A and B (caster sugar and water) into a heavy saucepan and stir once or twice to wet all the sugar. |
No dry sugar sitting on the surface |
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3 |
Heat |
Heat gently over a medium flame, stirring only until the sugar dissolves. Brush down any sugar crystals from the side of the pan with a wet pastry brush. |
Liquid completely clear, no grains left on the bottom |
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4 |
Boil |
Bring to the boil and let it bubble for 1 to 2 minutes without stirring. |
Clear, slightly thickened syrup |
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5 |
Add |
Take the pan off the heat and stir in C (fresh lemon juice). |
Lemon juice fully mixed through |
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6 |
Cool |
Let the syrup cool to room temperature, then pour into the jar and seal. |
Thick, clear and glossy, pouring slowly from the spoon |
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7 |
Store |
Keep in the refrigerator and use as needed. Thin with water, juice, coffee or spirits when you want a soaking syrup for sponge layers. |
Crystal-free and clear |
Important Notes
The scaled batch makes about 640 g of finished syrup, around 500 ml, once a little water has boiled away. This is a heavy syrup, two and a half parts sugar to one part water, so it is too strong to brush straight onto sponge: thin it to taste with water, fruit juice, coffee or a spirit first. The lemon juice is not for flavour, it is there to stop the sugar crystallising as the syrup stands. Stored in a clean sealed jar in the refrigerator it keeps for several weeks; discard it if you see any cloudiness or mould. If crystals do form on the sides of the pan while cooking, wash them down with a wet pastry brush rather than stirring them back in.
Tools & Arrangements
Kitchen scales, heavy-based saucepan, wooden spoon or heatproof spatula, pastry brush, heatproof jug, clean jar or bottle with a tight lid. A sugar thermometer is useful but not essential.
