Do you ever get bored with the same coffee offerings over and over? I do too sometimes, so I have been experimenting with different flavor combinations that exist in the world and decided to add a little smokiness and earthy herbal taste to my morning coffee in the form of this charred sage caramel coffee syrup.
This is not caramel, it's more like the Torani coffee syrup you get at the store. I tried making this as regular caramel but guess what happens one you put it in the fridge to use next time? It turns hard as a rock and isn't good for adding to your coffee! It tasted really good though.
Special Equipment Needed
- A good kitchen torch (you can use it for so many other things too!)
- Butane
- Metal tongs
How to Char Sage Leaves
- Choose 10-12 fresh sage leaves.
- Stack them atop one another and use metal tongs to grip the bundle tightly.
- Use your kitchen torch to lightly char the edges. You want to smell the sage lightly burning, but not caught on fire or burnt to a crisp. Aim for about bing ¼ burnt, mostly on the edges, as shown below.
- Set aside.
Charred Sage Caramel Coffee Syrup
Equipment
- 1 cooking torch
Ingredients
- 12 fresh sage leaves
- 1 cup white sugar
- ¼ cup water
- 1 teaspoon light corn syrup
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 pinch salt
- ¼ cup water (room temperature, not cold)
Instructions
- Use metal tongs to hold the sage leaves together arms' length from your body and anything else in the kitchen. Carefully use the cooking torch to gently char the edges of the sage leaves. Do not burn it to a crisp or catch them on fire. Set aside in a heat-safe bowl.
- Heat the sugar, corn syrup, and ¼ cup of water over medium low heat until sugar is dissolved. This may take about 5 minutes.
- Once the sugar is dissolved, add in the charred sage leaves and turn the heat to medium high. Stir frequently and the syrup with turn a very light amber color. Remove the sage leaves with the tongs, and discard the leaves. After the mixture starts bubbling, about 3-4 minutes, remove from the heat.
- Very carefully, add the pinch of salt and stir. Then slowly drizzle in the vanilla extract. it may bubble and spit. While still stirring, very slowly drizzle in the other ¼ cup water. Keep stirring until the consistency is even.
- Set aside to cool, then pour into an airtight container. Keeps in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
Store this in the fridge for up to two weeks. To make a nice iced coffee with this, mix 2 tablespoons of syrup with 8 ounces of cold coffee and creamer of your choice. You can also enjoy it hot too! Two tablespoons per coffee means this syrup should last for 6 coffee drinks.
