5 Creative Ways To Use Coffee Syrups Beyond Your Morning Brew

For those who prefer a little sweetness to complement the boldness of their morning cup of coffee, adding a dash of flavored syrup opens up numerous possibilities. Whether you keep it basic with a mocha or hazelnut syrup or prefer to get a bit experimental, there are plenty of brands and styles to choose from. If you typically keep your syrup stash well-stocked, you might be wondering what other potential uses they might have. 

Most coffee syrups are made using a solution of sugar diluted in hot water to which either natural or artificial flavors, or a mixture of both, are added. This means that these syrups can be easily used in a wide variety of beverages including cocktails, milkshakes, lemonades, smoothies, hot cocoa, and so many more. As these syrups are meant to be mixed into coffee, they have an ideal consistency for fully combining into whatever liquid you can think of, meaning the only thing you have to determine is what flavor you want to use. 

Big brands such as Monin and Torani, which took the top two spots in Tasting Table's ranking of coffee syrup brands, respectively, boast a range of different flavors from floral and fruity to nutty and also include options for sugar-free products. For a standard-sized coffee, around 1 to 2 tablespoons of syrup is a good place to start, but it's all up to your taste preferences. With other drinks, you may have to adjust your ratios to get the balance right.

With mixed drinks, it's often a swirl of simple syrup or a dash of bitters that makes a truly memorable cocktail. But repurposing your favorite coffee syrup to liven up a cocktail will add big flavor, even in a small amount. As with coffee, you won't need more than about 1 fluid ounce (or 2 tablespoons) of syrup to mix into your cocktail to ensure the flavor hits without overpowering the rest of your drink. Because mixed drinks typically have a few different components, you want to make sure that all the ingredients will mix together to create a cohesive taste.

If your preference leans botanical, try using floral flavored syrups such as lavender or rose alongside a gin like Hendrick's with a splash of tonic water for an elevated gin and tonic. For those who enjoy whiskey, consider mixing up a tablespoon of hazelnut, butter pecan, or toffee syrup in a glass of Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey served on the rocks. You can also turn up the volume on your favorite Irish coffee recipe with a splash of chocolate or Irish cream flavored syrup, like this one by Torani on Amazon.

When you start with a reliable old-fashioned vanilla milkshake recipe as your base, the sky's the limit for what fun flavors you can add to the mix. One of the best things about vanilla ice cream is its versatility and ease of taking on other flavors, and all you need to make the perfect milkshake is a bit of ice cream and milk. To this, you can add just about any coffee syrup you can think of and even consider a few combinations you previously hadn't. Add either vanilla, chocolate, or strawberry syrup to your base milkshake recipe, or even a portion of all three for a Neapolitan ice cream-inspired flavor. Looking at the nearly limitless flavors that span across all major coffee syrup purveyors, there's a lot of room for experimenting with different pairings.

Consider a combination of chocolate and cherry flavored coffee syrups for the ultimate Black Forest cake-inspired milkshake. This would go especially well in a milkshake in which you're using a chocolate ice cream as the base. For a tropical treat, mix together pineapple or vanilla ice cream with the milk of your choosing and an ounce of the syrup we gave the number one spot to in our ranking of popular Monin syrup flavors, passion fruit. You can buy a 750-milliliter bottle of the flavor on Amazon. Depending on the kind of syrups you typically use for your coffee, this can inform your choice of dessert flavors for later.

Like a milkshake, having an easy-to-prepare lemonade recipe will provide the ideal springboard for a variety of your favorite flavors. Start with the basics, mixing freshly squeezed lemon juice with simple syrup and diluting it with water to get your ideal beverage. Try lessening the initial sugar content in your recipe or supplementing the simple syrup entirely with a flavored coffee syrup to get just the right amount of sweetness to match the tart lemon flavor in your drink.

If you want to infuse the flavors of the summer season into your lemonade, use an ounce of peach or lavender syrup in your mixture. Choose fruity flavors such as strawberry, raspberry, pineapple, or even lime syrup to give your lemonade an extra tangy punch. On the herbal and floral side, an ounce of rose, elderflower, or hibiscus syrup would elevate your lemonade to crave-worthy status. Mint flavored syrups, like Monin's Frosted Mint (available on Amazon), also make for a great addition to a glass of lemonade for a soothing refreshment on a hot day.

Whereas milkshakes are typically made with ice cream, most smoothies are made up of a mixture of fruits, juices, vegetables, and a base of yogurt or a similar substance. Seen as a more nutrient-rich alternative to milkshakes, smoothies are definitely something with which you'll want to be sparing about your use of sweetener. Luckily, most coffee syrups pack a punch of flavor and you won't need more than a couple tablespoons or less to get the taste you want, particularly if you're using a flavored syrup that enhances a fruit flavor already present in the mix.

Take an easy banana matcha smoothie, for example, the ingredients for which include bananas, matcha powder, soy milk, maple syrup, and dates. Even a small hint of matcha or banana flavored coffee syrup will be enough to give your smoothie a boost of flavor without overpowering it. Similarly, you can use a splash of toffee or chocolate flavored syrup to enhance a peanut butter protein smoothie with just the right amount of sweetness and complementary flavor. If you're trying to adjust your morning routine to add more smoothies and perhaps less coffee, then repurposing your coffee syrup for a new beverage is an ideal choice.

Enjoying a soothing cup of hot chocolate on a cold winter's night is the ultimate in coziness. Many coffee syrup brands offer special seasonal flavors, which make the magic of the wintertime that much more special because you know you can add a dash of gingerbread or candy cane syrup to your cocoa. No matter what time of year it is, you can find a syrup to match your mood and even include it in a frozen hot chocolate recipe for extra decadence in your refreshment.

Try warm flavors like cinnamon, brown sugar, and vanilla to make your hot chocolate much more satisfying. Adding an extra dash of dark chocolate or mocha flavored syrup will serve to amplify the chocolatey tastes. For a nutty hot cocoa, hazelnut, pistachio, or amaretto will add a luxurious new depth of flavor. If you want something fruity, try adding strawberry, raspberry, or cherry syrup into the mix. There's no limit to the amazing creations you can come up with as long as you've got the syrup and a taste for adventure. And, of course, you can also create your own coffee syrups by flavoring a basic simple syrup.