Delicious Buttermilk Syrup

 Lauren and I grew up across the cul-de-sac from a chef who taught my Mom this delicious recipe.  I know my first thought when I hear buttermilk syrup is "HUH?"   Bet let me tell you--this stuff is incredible!  BEWARE: this is not a low-calorie condiment (is syrup a condiment?) so keep yourself from drinking it plain!  My favorite part of this recipe (besides the taste) is that I always have the ingredients hanging around so it's easy to make whenever I run out!

 The Ingredients

Butter, Sugar, Buttermilk (or milk+lemon juice), Baking Soda, and Vanilla

 What if you don't have buttermilk?

Easy peasy.  For my double batch of syrup, I needed 1 cup of buttermilk.  So I took one cup of milk and added 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice.  I mix this part up very first so it has a couple minutes to buttermilk-ify.  (Yeah--it's a word...).  I love this trick--you can use it anywhere you need buttermilk!  You can also use vinegar, but I like the way lemon juice turns out hands down!

Just a Tip:

Use a bigger pan than you think!  Looking at the recipe, you will think a small saucepan will do the trick.  But there is serious bubble-age here-see?  My double batch barely fit in my four quart pot!

Buttermilk Syrup

1/2 cup Butter

1/2 cup Buttermilk (make your own with 1/2 c. Milk and 1/2 Tablespoon Lemon Juice!)

1 cup Sugar

1/2 tsp. Baking Soda

1 tsp. Vanilla

Melt butter in large saucepan (volume of mixture will increase as it boils).  Add buttermilk, sugar, and soda.  Stir well.  Bring to a boil; boil for one minute, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.  Makes about 2 cups.