Syrup For Moistening Cakes

Are you going to prepare a sponge cake and do not want it to be too dry or too hard? So, do not hesitate to read this article. In it, we will tell you different syrup recipes to moisten cakes. Take advantage!

Basic syrup for soaking cakes

The syrup used to dunk or get drunk a sponge cake is very easy to prepare. The base is always the same. It carries in equal parts:

• Water
• Sugar

Depending on the flavor of the cake or the filling we want to achieve, we can add other ingredients, such as:

• Spirits:  amaretto, rum, anise, brandy, bailey.
• Citrus:  orange, lemon, grapefruit.
• Spices and grains:  vanilla, coffee, cinnamon, chocolate, cardamom, grated coconut.
• Fruits:  strawberries, apple, pear, cherries, raspberries (always crushed).

Preparation

• In a saucepan, add the water and sugar, and  heat over low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon.
• When it thickens and turns dark brown, the cake moistening syrup is ready.
• Then you could add the rest of the additional ingredients. Without removing the syrup from the heat, mix everything for a few more minutes. In the case of citrus, it is advisable to grate the peel. If it is a liquor, it is added directly. Aromatic spices can be added at the beginning of cooking. With coffee or chocolate,  dissolve first in water. For fruits , crush well, and remember that the weight is deducted from the amount of sugar.  (For example, if there are 250 grams of water and 50 grams of fruit, add 200 grams of sugar at most. If not, it will be very sweet.)
• After letting it cool a bit, you can pour it on top of the cake. You can use this syrup to moisten cookies, soletillas, muffins, rolls, sweet bread  or whatever comes to mind.

Different types of syrup

Did you know that the thickness of the syrup can  vary depending on the recipe we want to prepare?  Here are the details. In any of these cases, we start from the same base:

• 2 measures of sugar.
• 1 measure of water.

(That is, the number of grams of sugar will double the milliliters of water.)

Preparation

1. Put the sugar in a saucepan and cover with water.

2. Stir over low heat until the sugar dissolves.

3. Raise the flame and let it boil until it reaches the desired thickness:

• Point 1: Bar syrup. Boil for 3 minutes and remove as soon as the density begins to increase. It is used to prepare cocktails, natural fruits and to cook eggs.
• Point 2: Loose thread. Cooking is 8 minutes. Is recognized when the draw a drop and place it between two fingers, to the open one is trickle  or strand breaking away. It is the perfect place to moisten cakes, paint baked pieces and make homemade liqueurs.
• Point 3: Strong thread. There are 10 minutes of boiling. The recognition procedure is the same as the previous one. The thread has to be more resistant. It is used in the preparation of many desserts, such as  burnt yolk.

• Point 4: Soft ball. It needs only 1 minute longer than strong thread. Put cold water in a cup and pour a drop of syrup. Once cold, it should take the consistency of chewing gum. If you can shape it with your fingers without problems, you already have a “soft ball”.
• Point 5: Hard ball. The cooking time is 12 minutes. Repeating the previous operation, check that it is not so easy to knead it. It is used in the elaboration of chocolates.
• Point 6: Candy. It is the hardest of all and takes 13 minutes to cook. At that point, the syrup turns a golden color. To determine that it is ready, pour some in cold water. You will see how it crystallizes and you will hear the classic sound of something breaking. It will break easily if you take it between your fingers.

Bonus track: Chocolate syrup

For having learned how to get all the syrup points that exist, we give you a recipe: chocolate syrup. Take note.

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cup of sugar.
• 300 ml of water.
• 30 grams of bitter cocoa.
• 1 tablespoon butter.
• 1 pinch of vanilla essence.

Preparation

• Put the water and sugar in a saucepan.
• Heat over high heat until it comes to a boil.
• Let it boil for 6 minutes.
• Remove from the heat and add the chocolate to melt.
• Pour in the butter and the vanilla essence.
• Reheat for about 5 minutes.
• Let cool before spreading on top of cake.