This year the LEEP (Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program) staff started collecting sap quite early! Trees were tapped in January! It was the earliest we have ever tapped the trees. Of course, that is great, since the season may end early.
We use the maple syrup in many ways here in the kitchen. The simplest and most desireable is warmed over fresh made pancakes or French toast.
This month I will be offering a few recipes out for how we use pure maple syrup. I have featured the pecan syrup before, but today I thought I would pass along a small family size recipe. However, if you make the larger, you can store it in the refrigerator for a up to two weeks or in the freezer for up to a month. Replacing the sugar with agave syrup has significantly improved the overall quality of this syrup. With sugar, you have to be concerned with it crystalizing in the refrigerator/freezer. I also thought I would share our Blueberry Syrup recipe. This recipe tends to change some each time we use it, the outcome is based on what fruits we add to the syrup. It is very versatile. We have used left-over fruit salsa, fresh fruits like kiwi, strawberries, apples and oranges. Honestly, there is not much fruit we wouldn't consider putting in this syrup. Well, okay maybe bananas and grapes! You get the point.
Maple sugar season kicks off Spring. Using the Earth's bounty is great way to come out of the dull-drums of winter. This winter was not incredibly cold as the last few, the lack of green can bring the mood down. Think of the Maple season as the beginning of something great to come.
Today, I am adding a new feature to the blog. The recipes can be printed at my recipe page. As time goes on I will be adding other featured recipes to this page. Click on the Recipe titles below to access the full recipe. After you click on the links below scroll down the page. The recipe is lower on the page. I am working on fixing the error.
Enjoy!
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