Title: When the Sap Begins To Stir
Categories: Maple Syrup
Yield: 1 Servings

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Every year, in the early spring, around St. Patrick's day, the sap from maple trees starts to run. To the farmer it means long hours of hard work. To the children it means fresh boiled sugar on snow. To the mother it means extra food to cook, bread to bake, tubs to wash, cans to fill and people to feed.

If you're an inveterate romantic like me, you listen to the first spring rush and roar of overflowing brooks, you delight in the mixed smell of wood smoke and maple syrup, and suddenly you're hungry for all the good things you can make with the maple's sap.

I remember how my husband and I were thrilled the first time we saw the sap running from our own maples at Noirmouton, our farm, and how eager we were to find out how the syrup of our trees would taste. I remembered my grandfather saying, "If you cook the first pail of early sap by itself on the stove, you have a syrup fit for the gods," so I decided to cook that first pail. It took patience but we were well rewarded.

I feel a little sad today to see the maple sap transported by plastic hose, and the sugar houses replaced by automatic evaporators. With everything sreamlined and efficient, a bit of the old-fashioned romance and magic of sugaring off has been lost.

The "brown sweetness" as people used to refer to maple syrup in the old days, has a way of adding charm and flavor to any food. Pour a golden trickle on your morning cereal and enjoy it on grapefruit halves, glaze your ham with it, or simply heat it with chopped walnuts and pour it over ice cream for a hot maple sundae.

A Few Notes on Maple Sugar and Syrup:

~ If a recipe calls for maple sugar and you have only maple syrup, simply boil the syrup slowly until it threads or forms a soft ball in cold water. Then remove from heat, let it cool and beat until thick like fudge. Pour in a pan and let it harden. Two cups of maple syrup will yield 1 cup of sugar.

~ If, on the other hand, a recipe calls for syrup and you have only maple sugar, simply grate or cut the sugar into pieces, add a small amount of water and simmer over low heat until the sugar is melted.

~ Always store maple syrup in a dry cool place in small containers, preferably ones of glass. Once a gallon tin has been opened, transfer this syrup to glass jars or bottles.

~ If maple syrup ferments slightly, or forms a white cloud on top, you can restore it to its normal flavor by straining through a sieve lined with cheesecloth or paper cloth, then heating it to a full rolling boil. Skim the scum as it forms, the pour into hot sterilized jars or bottles and store.

~ Keep maple sugar in a cool place, wrapped in a double layer of foil paper.

Posted to MM-Recipes Digest V4 #10

Recipe by: The Canadiana Cookbook/Mme. Jehane Benoit

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