How to make sugar free lavender syrup

This simple syrup gets an herbal upgrade with lavender! This edible flower has a long history of use in medicine, particularly as a soothing anti-stress and anti-anxiety ally. Here you’ll learn how to make a lavender simple syrup two different ways, one made with cane sugar and the other with honey. Stir this versatile herbal syrup in your coffee and tea. Drizzle it on your oatmeal and waffles. Or jazz up your cocktails, mocktails, and more.

This simple syrup is incredibly easy to make and provides you with another easy way to include the health benefits of lavender in your every day. Why make a plain ol’ simple syrup when you could use it as a vehicle for nutritive and medicinal botanicals?! For real. Why?!

HERE YOU’LL FIND:
What is a Simple Syrup?
The Health Benefits of Lavender
Other Lavender Recipes You’ll Love
2 Ways to Make Lavender Simple Syrup
How to Use Lavender Simple Syrup
Simple Syrup FAQs
Recipe for Lavender Simple Syrup (2 Ways)

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What is a Simple Syrup?

To put it simply (pun intended), a simple syrup is basically liquid sugar. Simple syrups are typically thick and viscous, like maple syrup, but colorless. Traditionally they’re made with one part water to one part sugar (1:1) and are typically made with granulated cane sugar.

Simple syrups are often also referred to as sugar syrups and are used to sweetened anything from iced tea, iced coffee drinks, lemonade, and more. Getting sugar to dissolve in cold drinks can be a little difficult. Simple syrups make it real easy to sweeten your beverages.

You’ll commonly see simple syrups as one of many sweetener options at coffee shops, and they’re also prominent in cocktail culture. Simple syrups are a staple in every bartender’s and barista’s toolkit.

Why simple syrup?

Sugar is an incredible preservative! They are a great way to preserve the season’s abundance just a little longer. But also, unfortunately, sugar is not nutritive and can, in fact, be quite detrimental to our health, particularly so if we consume too much of it.

Adding herbal medicines to simple syrups may not be an appropriate medicinal preparation for everyone. But it can make not-so-great-tasting herbal medicines go down with ease and can also be a fun, unique, and delicious way to welcome more beneficial plants into your life.

And let’s face it, sugar is here to stay. It’s an amazing (and delicious!) plant. And while it may be incredibly difficult to avoid sugar altogether, we can so very easily add value to it with nutritive and medicinal plants.

What’s more is that you can also make simple syrups with sugars other than cane sugar. For example, you can make a simple syrup with honey!

Although, I do think it’s important to note that adding nutritive and medicinal value does not cancel out the downsides to sugar, nor is it an excuse for excessive sugar consumption. Always and forever use mindfulness and moderation when consuming sugar.

And with that said, let’s get to the fun part. Let’s amp up this syrup with some lavender!

The Health Benefits of Lavender

Apart from rose, is there a more romantic flower than lavender?! Its aroma alone conjures reveries of the warm and misty Provencal seaside. It’s romantic and medicinal!

Here are some of the medicinal properties that make lavender such an amazing herbal medicine.

• Diuretic: Diuretics help the body get rid of excess sodium by increasing the amount of fluid we’re getting rid of through urine. May be helpful in treating high blood pressure.

• Carminative: Carminative herbs help to stimulate digestion in a way that helps to prevent symptoms of poor digestion such as gas and bloating, indigestion, nausea, etc.

• Antimicrobial: Antimicrobial herbs demonstrate activity against harmful microbes such as bacteria and fungi.

• Mild sedative: Sedative herbs help to calm the nervous system and can be beneficial in reducing stress and anxiety.

• Antispasmodic: Antispasmodic herbs help to soothe muscle contractions and prevent spasms that may present as painful stomach cramping, muscle tension, and more.

• Anti-inflammatory: Anti-inflammatory herbs have a broad effect of decreasing inflammation in your body.

How Lavender May Support Your Health

On account of its medicinal properties, lavender may help to:

• Improve sleep quality
• Ease inflammatory skin conditions such as sunburn, eczema, psoriasis, and even small scrapes and cuts
• Ease other painful inflammatory conditions such as menstrual cramps, migraine headaches, and muscle tension
• Support healthy digestion so that you absorb more nutrients from the food that you eat
• Manage stress, anxiety, and depression

Want to dive deeper into the food and medicine of lavender? Check this out: All About Lavender – 19 Science-Supported Health Benefits & More

Lovin’ on Lavender? You Might Enjoy These:

Strawberry Lavender Tart ✺ Lavender and Pink Peppercorn Popcorn Seasoning
✺ Mini Elderberry & Fig Galettes with Lavender-Tulsi Honey ✺
6 Ways to Make Lavender Tea ✺ Herbs de Provence Infused Olive Oil

Here are two ways to make lavender simple syrup. Both are so easy that you’ll wonder why you haven’t done this before. The methods are relatively the same for both with the main difference being the sweetener you’ll use.

Whether you choose to make your simple syrup with granulated cane sugar or honey is completely up to you. It’s only a matter of personal preference.

If you are going for a more nutritive simple syrup, I recommend making the honey simple syrup. Use a raw, locally-sourced honey for the most nutritional value.

And if you’re real into honey like me, check out this post on making herbal honeys where I wax poetic about honey and how I consider it to be one of the planet’s greatest wonders.

Here’s how to make lavender simple syrup:

Equipment You’ll Need

• Small Saucepan with Lid
• Fine Mesh Strainer (I use and love THESE.)
• Glass Jar for Storage (You could use a mason jar, a recycled glass jar, or try THESE bale top bottles that are a must have for all your herbal pantry creations.)

Ingredients

• Water
• Lavender Flowers, fresh or dried
• Granulated Cane Sugar (organic when possible) or Honey (raw and local when possible)
• Vanilla Extract (completely optional, but a game changer)

Method

With Granulated Cane Sugar

1. Add all ingredients to a small saucepan. Add water, lavender flowers, and granulated sugar to a small sauce pan. Stir and then cover with lid.

1. Heat to just barely a boil. Over medium heat, bring to just a boil. As soon as water starts to boil, remove from heat and let cool to room temperature while covered.

1. Strain. Once the simple syrup has cooled to room temperature, pour through a fine mesh strainer to remove the lavender flowers. Then stir in the vanilla extract if using.

1. Use it, store it, love it! Store your lavender simple syrup in a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid in the refrigerator. Use within 1 month.

With Honey

The only difference here is that you’ll refrain from adding the honey until the water has cooled to just warm. This will help preserve some of the heat-sensitive nutritive value of the honey.

1. Make a strong lavender tea.Add lavender flowers and water to a small saucepan and bring to just a boil. Then remove from heat and cover with a lid.

1. Allow lavender tea to cool to warm.Allow the lavender tea to cool down from hot to warm (about 30-40 minutes). You want it still warm enough that stirring in honey will be easy, but not so hot that the beneficial nutrients in the honey are destroyed.

1. Add the honey.Stir until honey is completely dissolved.

1. Strain. Use a fine mesh strainer to strain out the lavender flowers, pouring the syrup into a glass jar or other storage container. Then stir in the vanilla extract if using.

1. Use it, store it, love it! Store your lavender simple syrup in a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid in the refrigerator. Use within 1 month.

The Many Ways to Use Lavender Simple Syrup

So you’ve made yourself some lavender simple syrup, now what?! Here’s a few ideas on how to use it:

• Use it to sweeten your cold or hot beverages like coffee, tea, lemonade, or your homemade herbal lattes (try this Lavender Matcha Latte)
• Drizzle it in your oatmeal or over pancakes, waffles, or warm biscuits. Yum!
• Jazz up your fresh strawberry shortcake with a little drizzle.
• Add it to your spring and summer cocktails and mocktails. Plain soda water with a splash of lavender simple syrup is divine.
• Gift it! Add a sprig of fresh or dried lavender in a decorative bottle, tie some twine or ribbon around it, and gift it to your friends and family. Botanical syrups make a great gift for dinner party hosts!

Lavender Simple Syrup FAQs

Can I use any type of sugar?

I think granulated cane sugar and honey are the two best sweeteners to use in making simple syrups.

However, you could also use coconut sugar if you don’t mind the dark color and richer taste. The stronger taste of coconut sugar may also mask the flavors of the herbs you’re using in your syrup. If you plan to use this syrup in cocktails or anything that a brown-colored syrup would aesthetically ruin, I’d stick to granulated cane sugar. Even honey will give the syrup a golden, honied hue.

I have not made any simple syrups with sugar alternatives like monkfruit sweeteners, so I can’t speak to that possibility. You could try this sugar-free, keto-friendly simple syrup recipe from The Urban Cowgirl.

Can I use any type of lavender?

While no lavender is considered to be toxic or unsafe to consume, not all lavender is treated equally. The lavender that you’ll find at craft stores is typically heavily treated with chemicals and is not intended for cosmetic or food use.

For the most health benefit, be sure to use lavender that hasn’t been treated with chemical pesticides, fungicides, or fertilizers. Organically-grown lavender is always the best bet.

You’ll find that Lavandula angustifolia, commonly called English lavender, is the most commonly used variety in both food and medicine. It’s also the most widely available variety.

Why isn’t my lavender syrup purple?

Unfortunately, the beautiful purple color of the lavender flowers doesn’t translate well into water. Lavender tea is typically a light brown-ish, green-ish color. Consequently, even your lavender simple syrup made with granulated cane sugar will have a slight brownish hue to it.

When you see a purple lavender syrup, most often it has had artificial dyes added to it. And artificial colorants are exactly the kinds of ingredients you do not want in a botanical syrup.

Does simple syrup need to be refrigerated?

Yes, it’s highly recommended that you store your simple syrups in the refrigerator. They’ll last much longer. Simple syrups made with fresh herbs especially will be less shelf stable due to the extra water content and natural bacteria on the plants.

How long does lavender simple syrup last?

Store your simple syrup in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to one month. In all honesty, they’ll probably last a lot longer, but one month is a safe bet. Always be sure to discard if any unfavorable changes in taste, smell, or appearance occur.

For more plant magic & herbal wellness in your life, be sure to follow along on ➡️ Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, or Twitter, & snag my herbal 📚 eBooks Nourishing Herbal Gifts & Holiday Pies from the (Un)Bakery. 🌿 And please don’t forget to tag me in your snaps 📸 @_botanyculture_. I love to see all the plant magic you make happen!

How to Make Lavender Simple Syrup | 2 Ways (With & Without Sugar)

Difficulty: Easy

This simple syrup is an easy way to add a lovely touch of lavender to so many things! Stir this versatile herbal syrup in your coffee and tea. Drizzle it on your oatmeal and waffles. Or jazz up your cocktails, mocktails, and more.

Ingredients

• Lavender Simple Syrup *WITH SUGAR*

• 1 cup water

• 2 tablespoons lavender flowers, fresh or dried

• 1 cup granulated cane sugar, organic if possible

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, optional

• Lavender Simple Syrup *WITH HONEY*

• 1 cup water

• 2 tablespoons lavender flowers, fresh or dried

• 1 cup honey, raw and local if possible

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, optional

Directions

• Lavender Simple Syrup *WITH SUGAR*
• Add all ingredients to a small saucepan. Add water, lavender flowers, and granulated sugar to a small sauce pan. Stir to dissolve sugar.
• Heat to just a boil. Over medium heat, bring to just a boil. As soon as water starts to boil, cover, remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
• Strain. Once the simple syrup has cooled to room temperature, pour through a fine mesh strainer to remove the lavender flowers. Then stir in the vanilla extract if using.
• Use it, store it, love it! Store your lavender simple syrup in a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid in the refrigerator. Use within 1 month.
  
• Lavender Simple Syrup *WITH HONEY*
• Make a strong lavender tea. Add lavender flowers and water to a small saucepan and bring to just a boil. Then remove from heat and cover with a lid.
• Allow lavender tea to cool to warm. Allow the lavender tea to cool down from hot to warm (about 30-40 minutes). You want it still warm enough that stirring in honey will be easy, but not so hot that the beneficial nutrients in the honey are destroyed.
• Add the honey. Stir until honey is completely dissolved.
• Strain. Use a fine mesh strainer to strain out the lavender flowers, pouring the syrup into a glass jar or other storage container. Then stir in the vanilla extract if using.
• Use it, store it, love it! Store your lavender simple syrup in a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid in the refrigerator. Use within 1 month.

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DISCLAIMER: The information given in this article is intended for educational purposes only. Always consult with your healthcare practitioner before consuming certain herbs & medicinal foods, especially if pregnant, nursing, or taking any prescription medications.

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