Instant CLEAR GEL is modified food starch. It is made from tapioca and has been modified so that it thickens without cooking—a big time saver! You can get this at most kitchen specialty stores (Bosch Kitchen Centers, for instance).

This starch has many advantages. Besides thickening food instantly, it stays thick whether hot or cold; it has an indefinite shelf life if kept cool and moisture free; it’s relatively inexpensive; and it has endless uses. This food starch can be substituted in any recipe that calls for corn starch or flour as a thickener.

There are 3 specific ways to add it into your liquids so you have no lumps:

1. When sugar is one of the ingredients, add the CLEAR GEL to the sugar and stir thoroughly before adding the liquid.
2. Use the blender: have your liquid measured into the blender and add the CLEAR GEL as the blender is running.
3. OR, while stirring liquid, add the CLEAR GEL by using a salt shaker so it is added very slowly and in small amounts at a time.

Let stand 10 minutes to get full thickening power. If the product is too thin, shake in more CLEAR GEL. If the product is too thick, add more liquid. But note: it is much easier to thicken more than it is to thin it down.

Here are a few money-saving CLEAR GEL recipes that we’ve used over the years:

Buttery Maple Syrup

½ C sugar
2 Tbsp CLEAR GEL
1¼ C water
1 Tbsp Mapeline flavoring
2 tsp imitation butter flavoring

Mix dry ingredients together then add to liquid or put all together in the blender. Can be served hot or cold. Really yummy and much better than store-bought syrups—NO preservatives!