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Homemade Sno Cone Syrups

Make your own homemade sno cone syrups in cherry and lemon lime for slushies and other frozen treats. All you need is fresh fruit and sugar.

Sno cones are awesome.

I don’t even really need to write a story today. I could just write “sno cones are awesome” and you all would nod your head at your screens in agreement because it’s not a subjective opinion.

It’s objective, factual, a phrase that would stand up in court.

homemade lemon-lime and cherry sno cone syrups
Photo: Casey Barber

So why did my parents, who gave my sister and I almost anything we asked for, refuse us the Snoopy Sno Cone Machine in our formative years?

Yeah, I’m still a little bitter. I mean, I was allowed to use the teensy watt bulb in the EZ Bake Oven to make inedible brownies.

I was allowed to hurtle down the driveway toward oncoming traffic with the Roller Racer (which–in fairness–was my sister’s, but as the older sibling, I commandeered it fairly frequently).

I was even allowed to invent a game called “Pigs in a Blanket” that consisted of tucking myself into a slippery nylon sleeping bag and sliding down the stairs, Home Alone-style.

homemade cherry sno cone syrup
Photo: Casey Barber

The irony was that I still ate artificially flavored neon shaved ice by the gallon as a kid, I just never did it at home.

Living in the vicinity of both a corner store that served Slush Puppies and a Dairy Queen, where I’d slurp down Mr. Misty floats until my brain was almost on permafreeze, I never lacked access to slushy goodness.

Were my parents keeping the sno cone machine from me as a character-building exercise?

Maybe they were waiting for me to become a professional recipe developer so one day I’d look at the thermometer hitting 95 degrees for the third straight day in a row and think, “That’s it. If I can’t have central air in this creaky old house, at least I can make a damn sno cone for myself.”

homemade lemon-lime sno cone syrup
Photo: Casey Barber

So I bit the bullet and bought a sno cone machine.

Once that relatively affordable investment’s been made (seriously, all it does is shave ice, there’s no need to go gangbusters), the sky’s the limit for homemade sno cone syrups–thanks to the science of sugar.

As I explained in my caramel primer, sugar is technically a “wet” ingredient, meaning it’ll become fully liquid when heat is applied.

Following are two ways of making homemade sno cone syrups.

pouring homemade cherry sno cone syrup
Photo: Casey Barber

The first uses fresh sour cherry juice that’s been simmered down to intensify its flavor and use its natural sugars to kickstart the syrup process. (Hey, I’m a sour cherry freak, of course I have fresh juice on hand!)

I didn’t want to cook down any citrus juice for the lemon-lime version–not as much natural sugar in those bad boys–so a supercharged simple syrup, using a 2:1 sugar-to-water ratio instead of the usual 1:1, did the trick.

King Arthur Flour’s lime juice powder is my secret weapon for giving the lemon-lime syrup that extra Slushee-esque taste without using anything fake, and has many more uses than syrup flavoring.

homemade sno cone syrups

I’ve snuck it into icings and glazes, mixed it with sour cream and salsa for a dip, and sprinkled it on berries.

If you can’t wait for your order to arrive, sub in two packets of True Lime crystals–they’re in the Kool-Aid and Crystal Light aisle at the supermarket.

homemade lemon-lime and cherry sno cone syrups

Homemade Sno Cone Syrups

Yield: 1 cup each
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes

Make your own homemade sno cone syrups in cherry and lemon lime for slushees and other frozen treats. All you need is fresh fruit and sugar.

Ingredients

Cherry Syrup

  • 2 cups fresh sour cherry juice (or sweet cherry juice, if sour cherries are out of season)
  • 1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar

Lemon-Lime Syrup

  • 1/2 cup fresh lime juice (from about 4-5 limes)
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from 1-2 lemons)
  • 1 teaspoon lime powder
  • 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup water

Instructions

To make cherry syrup:

  1. Bring the cherry juice to a simmer in a small saucepan and cook until reduced by half, about 30 minutes. 
  2. Add the sugar and stir until fully dissolved.
  3. Transfer to a squeeze bottle or other pourable container and refrigerate until fully chilled.

To make lemon-lime syrup:

  1. Whisk the lime and lemon juices with the lime powder in a small bowl.
  2. Heat the sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring gently until the sugar is fully dissolved and the liquid is clear. 
  3. Bring to a simmer and cook without stirring for about 5 minutes, until the liquid thickens slightly to a syrupy consistency and the bubbling action slows down.
  4. Remove the syrup from the heat and cool for 1 minute, then whisk into the citrus juice.
  5. Transfer to a squeeze bottle or other pourable container and refrigerate until fully chilled.

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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1/4 cup
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 135Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 56mgCarbohydrates: 34gFiber: 0gSugar: 32gProtein: 0g

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17 Comments

    1. Alexandra, you just made me think of a new use for lime powder (and yes, you could do this with fresh lime juice too) – whisk it with a pitcher of water before freezing into ice cubes. That’ll give you something new to crunch on!

  1. We are in Sicily, having limone granita’s right now. Very similar to a snow cone, but with hand shaved ice and fresh Sicilian lemons

  2. Oh my. Roller Racers. My kids have them. I told my sister that we absolutely needed them for my kids because my parents never gave them to us, and then realized we have no flat surface to ride on (severely slanted driveway), so they drive them around our living room, kitchen, and dining room. I always have to wear shoes to protect my toes these days.

  3. I can totally tell we grew up in the same era. Roller Racer? Check. Snoopy Sno Cone Machine? Check. EZ Bake Oven? Check. I had them all!

    I love the sound of your homemade syrups and since I’m a self-proclaimed slush addict, you can bet I’ll be giving them a try very soon!

    1. I love that everyone remembers Roller Racers as fondly as I do. And I’m doubly happy that they still make ’em! Now… does anyone else remember the Pogo Ball?

  4. Thanks for the Lime Syrup recipe….I was trying to find a pre-made syrup in stores but couldn’t find it. I think I’m going to try this! Thanks again!

    1. Emma, as I write in the post, if you don’t want to order the King Arthur Flour lime powder, sub in two packets of True Lime crystals–they’re in the Kool-Aid and Crystal Light aisle at the supermarket. But the KAF version is far superior.

    1. You can do either – I had extra juice from fresh cherries on hand (just left in the bottom of the bowl after the pitting process, though you can blend and strain as well), but storebought sour cherry juice is fairly easy to come by.

  5. I bought a new ice shaver machine for $35 on line and then, during one of my daily trips to the various thrift stores, I saw almost the exact same machine for $3.98 and another one for $1.78 as a backup. I sent back the new one and these work fantastically. Right now I have been buying the Jelly Belly Bean brand of snow cone syrup, $2.99 for 16 oz at Target and Bed, Bath and Beyond. I do intend to make my own as I do not like giving my grandson high fructose corn syrup. My girlfriend used to put corn starch in her syrup to make it thicker but could not find her recipe so I am just going to experiment with a teaspoon. She also suggested getting some exotic flavors from the local cake supply store. I am the neighborhood’s favorite grandma. I don’t use the little paper cones, I bought some good sized cups at the Dollar Tree and give them plastic spoons.

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