Pure Maple Syrup Recipes...HELP!

[annabelle]

Noobie poster, long-time lurker here:

Can our confectioners help me out? My brother in law has gifted us with nearly one gallon (US) in maple syrup that he tapped as sap, cooked down and bottled on his hobby farm in Upstate New York. It is professionally bottled in quart/liter bottles and jugs.

It is lovely, tasty stuff. However, we can only enjoy so many pancakes or french toast. I have made many batches of rolled cookies, cleverly cut with a maple leaf cutter, but my options are running dry, so to speak. And yes, I have made some savory dishes, as well.

I am not a candy-maker, as a rule, and am failing all over trying to find a good maple fudge recipe. No one here has nut allergies, either, so that is not an obstacle. I fear we will be drowning in lovely maple syrup if I don't make use of it and soon!

Thank you in advance for any help.

[Katie Meadow]

Good maple syrup is gold. No need to be in a hurry--it's only 4 quarts! I find maple syrup keeps very well in the fridge. I shove the main bottle way in the back and decant as needed into a pint container for handy use on oatmeal, pancakes, etc.

[Darcie B]

Maple syrup makes great granola. We have a pork loin cooking right now that has a maple syrup/cayenne glaze. If you like sweet with meat, pork and maple syrup are a great combo.

Maple buttercream is a great icing for cake (spice cake sounds good as a base).

[etalanian]

Try using it in muffins, quick breads, and pumpkin pie. You can also whip some into heavy cream for a nice dessert topping.

How lucky you are to have such a generous BIL. It will keep almost forever in the fridge. enjoy!

Eileen

[pingy]

One of my favorite restaurants makes this amazing dish of Maple Steak & Frites.

Basically, the steak is cooked to med-rare (or however you like it) sliced thinly and placed atop a plate of shoestring fries with a delicious maple sauce drizzle all over it.

They add a bit of cinnamon & black pepper to the maple syrup. It's absolutely delicious!

[chezcherie]

this was mentioned upthread, but bears repeating. do refrigerate it. i brought some home from a wonderful vermont trip, and when i saw mold on the surface, i wanted to cry. i would have thought the high sugar content would prevent that, but no. it would be a shame to have to pour out the fruits of your b-i-l's labor!

and use some on greek yogurt...mmmm. even the non fat is great with maple syrup. (and i NEVER go for the nonfat!)

[djyee100]

I'm envious. I recently bought a quart of premium maple syrup and I refuse to tell people how much I paid for it.

Do you make ice cream? Here's an adapted recipe of Maple Walnut Ice Cream from David Lebovitz's The Perfect Scoop. http://foodandpaper.blogspot.com/2007/11/i...eam-rewind.html

One of my favs from the cookbook. I've already made this ice cream twice.

And here's a recipe for Banana Maple Walnut Bread. It smells divine when it's baking, great for breakfast.

BANANA MAPLE WALNUT BREAD

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup melted butter

1/2 cup maple syrup

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

2 ripe bananas, mashed (1 1/2 to 2 cups)

1/2 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 X 5 loaf pan.

In a large bowl, mix together eggs, oil, butter, and syrup. Place a large sieve over the bowl and sift in the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Alternatively, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a smaller bowl and add to the wet ingredients. Stir the wet and dry ingredients only until just blended. Mix in the bananas and walnuts. Pour the batter into the pan. Bake for 50-55 mins until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

[JustKay]

Send them my way!

dyjee, same here. Real maple syrup cost a bomb. I miss living in Canada. Sigh.

annabelle, maybe you can just refrigerate them and use later. It keeps for a long time in there.

Edited April 25, 2008 by JustKay (log)

[tim]

Annabelle,

You should make some of the syrup into maple sugar.

I would talk to your brother-in-law about storage. I remember that syrup can pick up an off taste from a plastic jug.

Bringing the syrup to a boil and skimming any foam shouldl restore the flavor.

We should all have to suffer with such problems.

Tim

[prairiegirl]

I had a friend that always gave me maple syrup from New Brunswick. She told me to store it in the freezer. I would get 12 Litres at a time from her. The freezer worked perfectly.

[prasantrin]

this was mentioned upthread, but bears repeating. do refrigerate it. i brought some home from a wonderful vermont trip, and when i saw mold on the surface, i wanted to cry. i would have thought the high sugar content would prevent that, but no. it would be a shame to have to pour out the fruits of your b-i-l's labor!

←

If you do get mould in your maple syrup, just dump it in a pot, skim off as much mould as possible, then bring it to a boil, then skim some more. If you need to, bring it to a boil again, and skim again. You should be able to get most if not all the mould out. Wash your container thoroughly (or put it in a new sterilized container), pour the syrup back in, and you're good to go. The mould isn't toxic, it just tastes like...mould. If you don't get all of it out, you'll sometimes get a bit of mould flavour in a bite of pancake--a bit off-putting, but not the end of the world.

Just be careful that you don't overboil the syrup, because once it cools, it could end up as a hard mass that will never ever pour out of your container again (not that I know from experience ).

Edited April 25, 2008 by prasantrin (log)

[shaloop]

Maple Pecan Pie or Maple Granola. Two of my favorites, though I'm sorry I don't have the recipes handy right now.

[annabelle]

Thanks all! I do have it refrigerated. He is threatening to send more.

[Nyleve Baar]

First, I would suggest you decant the syrup into several smaller containers. Keep one in the fridge, store the rest in the freezer. It will keep perfectly for a year or more that way. Take out one container at a time to use - it won't be frozen solid, but should be allowed to come to room temp. at least before using.

Second - and this is something I just recently made - Maple Crema. I got the recipe from the New York Times about a year ago and hung onto it knowing it would be outstanding. It is. Actually, the next time I make it, I think I'd do it with a brulee topping - maybe maple sugar brulee (or even just brown sugar). It is jawdroppingly delicious and uses quite a hefty amount of maple syrup.

Edited April 26, 2008 by Nyleve Baar (log)

[djyee100]

He is threatening  to send more.

←

Say Yes to BIL, and a bunch of us here will volunteer to take it off your hands.

[Sethro]

Brush it on bacon, then microwave between paper towels until super crispy!

[Lisa2k]

Here's an incredible Maple Walnut cake that uses quite a bit of maple syrup in it, from the cake, to the frosting..to my favorite part, the walnuts being candied in the maple syrup. This is truly one of the best Maple Walnut (or any other nut that suits your fancy) cakes I've ever had, and I make it often.

Click for recipe!

[blurby]

I really love this recipe for Vermont Maple Granola from King Arthur flour. It uses a whole cup per batch. The final granola is incredibly crunchy (not tooth shattering though) and has a wonderful aroma of maple and vanilla.