My Grandpa (Ron) Garrison used to always have this incredible apricot syrup that he would jar every year.  (with a small orchard of apricots and cherries he had to find something to do with all of them)  It was one of those things that I looked forward to every year at Christmas time.  We would drive up to Ogden, Utah and every morning my nose was greeted with the smells of coffee, bacon, sausage, eggs and banana pancakes.  Let me tell you, when you couple banana pancakes with apricot syrup…well there’s just no better way to start your day!  (I must confess that I do like to change it up with blueberries from time to time though)

Apricots are just one of those summer fruits that I absolutely love…and I love them even more when I can mix them into different platings of food.  So this year I decided to make my own apricot syrup to use on pancakes, crepes, ice cream, over the top of pork chops (oh yeah, it’s good)…whatever I come up with.

If you’ve never attempted to make a syrup before, not to worry…neither had I.  If I can do it, you can do it.

I started by boiling some water over high heat and dropping 10 apricots into the pot.  I let them boil for about 5 minutes.

Once boiled, remove the apricots, discard the hot water and place them into an ice bath.  What we’re doing here is cooking them just long enough to be able to easily remove the skins.

One by one, peel the skins from the apricots and discard.  Slice them in half and discard the pits and anything else that may be remaining from the stems.  Make sure that there isn’t any little hard brown pieces, they will only crack your teeth when you bite down on them.  (not a good thing)

As you’re peeling and pitting the apricots, toss them back into the pot.  When everyone’s in there, turn the heat to medium and stir occassionally to help break down the apricots.  This process actually goes much faster than you might think.  Took me about 10 minutes or less.

Once you have a bit of a gooey mash in the pot, add in half of the water.  Stir to fully incorporate it and then add the remaining half.

Next add in our sugar.  Stir it.  Simmer it for about 10 minutes.

At this point you have a choice to make:
1)  Leave things as they are and have a chunky style syrup. (which is very good)
2) Pour the apricots into a blender and pulse until they are broken down into a puree.  (make sure to remove the little plastic cover over the hole in the lid and cover with a kitchen towel…leave the plastic cover on the hole and you might have an eruption)

I chose to go the more pureed route.  So into the blender for a quick pulsing.  We’re talking about only 10 seconds, if that.

Then pour back into the pot turning the heat down to medium-low and allowing the syrup to simmer for another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Spoon approximately 1 Tablespoon of the syrup into a small measuring cup or tea cup.  Add xanthan gum or corn starch and mix until completely disolved.  Then add back into the pot and stir. 

You can also pour the mixture through a strainer when adding it back into the pot to help break down some of the lumps.  Use a spoon to break down the lumps and force them through the strainer.

If you have never used xanthan gum before don’t be deceived…a little goes a very long way.  I purchased mine at Whole Foods Market for about $11+ and quickly found that it’s an amazing thickener without the starchy flavor.  You’ll also notice that almost everything we buy seems to have xanthan gum in it.  Just keep it stored in a cool place in an airtight container and you’re good to go!

After things have been able to reduce and thicken a bit it’s time to do a little taste test.  If it’s as sweet as you like, then perfect.  If not, go ahead and add a little more sugar a teaspoon at a time until you’re pleased with the sweetness.  I like mine to have a little bit of that apricot tartness still hanging around.

Remove from the heat.  If you are finding that there are still some lumps from the xantham gum or corn starch, then (in small batches) carefully pour the syrup through a strainer into a Pyrex bowl.  Use a spoon to help the syrup make its way through the strainer. Then simply discard anything that will not go through. 

 Cover with Syran wrap, allowing the wrap to lay on top of the syrup.  This will help keep any condensation from adding moisture to the syrup as it cools. 

Then, with a napkin underneath the bowl, place into the refrigerator for about an hour until it cools.

Once cooled, the skies the limit for the uses of this wonderful syrup!