Maple Syrup

Magicman · February 10, 2012, 02:34:55 PM

Dodgy Loner, you are absolutely correct, and she is a biscuit cooking machine. As Shotgun pointed out, I tried....twice. I have all of the necessary ingredients plus the unbiased tasters, but no Maple Syrup samples.

Shotgun · February 10, 2012, 05:24:51 PM

Something to think about is that we're coming up on the maple syrup production time. Any syrup worth talking about has probably already been sold. I'd wait a few weeks before I would be asking for samples, Magicman. You'll no doubt get a better product (for testing, etc.) toward the end of the next 6 weeks, or so. Be patient. Keep eating your grits. Maybe they'll be gone by maple syrup time. ;)

Norm

WDH · February 10, 2012, 07:05:12 PM

I don't eat syrup on grits, either

.

BBTom · February 10, 2012, 07:29:31 PM

I was working on some of my sap lines today. Syrup is made in many ways.

To collect the sap it varies from the old galvanized bucket to modern plastic pipeline to every tree.

To hold the sap it varies from old stock tanks to poly or stainless tanks with UV lights to sterilize the top of the sap.

To remove the water it varies from an old kettle over the fire to the use of reverse osmosis to remove most of the water, then into a large (mine is 4' x 12') oil fired syrup evaporator up to 6' wide x 20' long.

Filtering varies from letting gravity pull the syrup through a felt filter to using pumps to push the syrup through a filter press that removes all the little "floaties" and the "sugar sand" that precipitates out of the syrup as it is concentrated.

The standard plastic 'jug' that syrup is packed in costs the producer anywhere from .75 for smaller ones to 2.50 for gallon sized.

Syrup is supposed to be packaged at 190 degrees F so it sterilizes the container it goes into.

Pure maple syrup is the concentrated sap of maple trees. Nothing is allowed to be added.

I take most of what I make to New Hampshire and sell it bulk in 5 to 30 gallon containers. I would guess that they label it as Ohio Syrup, but I don't know for sure.

WDH · February 10, 2012, 08:56:16 PM

That syrup that you brought to the Pig Roast about 4 years ago was awesome. I can still taste it.

SPIKER · February 10, 2012, 09:54:04 PM

Hey BBTOM:

how is the Sawing & Sugaring going down there? I've been working in West Salem last few years. Not at the Pottery any longer so dont go by your way much.

Not making any syrup this year myself still have enough from 2010 to keep me thru end of fall anyhow. That was a very good year for my trees made maybe 10 gallons over open wood fire yummy stuff...

mark M

SwampDonkey · February 10, 2012, 09:55:23 PM

It should be starting to run here soon, it's been so mild. And we are only going to get a couple cold days this weekend and then back mild. I'll have to break off a twig on a maple and watch for the sap to flow on a sunny day. It's still 31 degrees here right now at 11:00 pm.

Magicman · February 11, 2012, 07:09:20 PM

We did it again! Hot biscuits and Maple Syrup, but still no grits, but close. I laid a few hot tamales beside them.

SPIKER · February 11, 2012, 09:10:29 PM

We had to open up a fresh jar today, w some nice french toast & bacon it was nice & yummy one of the batches w cherry & apple smoke flavor.

mark

Al_Smith · February 12, 2012, 07:31:40 AM

Quote from: WDH on February 10, 2012, 07:05:12 PM
I don't eat syrup on grits, either .

:D I don't eats grits period ,maple surple or no .

On the the maple though ,they will be setting the taps here pretty soon .You either have a taste for it or not .It's not bad on ice cream .

WDH · February 12, 2012, 07:33:22 AM

Are you joining the Grits Bashing Club, too ??? :D

Al_Smith · February 12, 2012, 07:42:17 AM

No just different strokes for different folks .

Down south they try to pawn them off on you with everything .Grits and eggs,grits and steak ,grits and grits .

I can stand hominy if I have enough gravey to drown them but I draw the line with hominy made from corn meal which is what grits are .Corn leached with lye .

Yeah my southern buddies think I'm nuts but give me my good old yankee fried taters with those eggs

Magicman · February 12, 2012, 08:22:39 AM

Quote from: Al_Smith on February 12, 2012, 07:42:17 AM
but I draw the line with hominy made from corn meal which is what grits are .Corn leached with lye .

Just to clarify a bit. Hominy is leached with lye and has a completely different taste than grits. Grits are not leached, but are just simply course ground either white or yellow corn.

thecfarm · February 12, 2012, 08:24:07 AM

Coon will be here pretty quick to straighten all you grits guy out. ;D We are strong in numbers. ;D

Mooseherder · February 12, 2012, 10:05:47 AM

I posted this almost three years ago.
I'd have to check to see if the bag we purchased is still in the pantry. :D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OnE8oigYGY

Magicman · February 12, 2012, 12:21:00 PM

Thanks, after corn is ground it is sifted through various dimension screens. The results are flour, cornmeal, grits, and chops. When I carried corn (which was in a sack thrown across the saddle with me) to the mill, my main product that I wanted was chops for the chickens. In this instance the flour, cornmeal, and grits were really a byproduct. The miller set the mill to mainly produce the product that you wanted.

I can assure you that in those days, grits were not a joke, they were food. Sometimes though, Mom would run out of grits and she would cook cornmeal mush. I did like it as well, but we had to eat.

Stephen1 · February 12, 2012, 01:48:55 PM

Hold It!!! How did we go from Maple sryup to Grits.
I will get in on the tasting contest, I will send u some of mine when we are finished canning in April.
Favourite ways and food to eat Maple Syrup

1-Cold Sap of the 1st run...just tip the bucket and drink
2- right out of the finishing pan with the ladle
3-buttermilk pancakes
4-dip homemade chocolate chip cookies in the finishing pan --hot syrup
5-vanilla ice cream
6- and finally taught to me by my Dad....fresh italian bread, cut 2 inches thick, smothered in peanut butter, and a bowl full of warm Maple Syrup...and a spoon to eat the syrup with...This is my favourite but I can only do it when the other half is home...

thecfarm · February 12, 2012, 01:56:55 PM

Put some on some snow and pick up kinda just the syrup and eat it. Best when the syrup has not had a chance to get as cold as the snow.
MM would have to crush up some ice to try that trick. ;D

Magicman · February 12, 2012, 02:18:53 PM

What is this "snow" stuff that you are talking about ??? ???

Quote from: Stephen1 on February 12, 2012, 01:48:55 PM
I will get in on the tasting contest, I will send u some of mine when we are finished canning in April.

Mark your calendars and get ready to travel and I'm thinking sometimes in May. We are going to have a Maple Syrup Sopping. Plenty of hot biscuits, butter, sausage, and maple syrup from several different locations.

digin1 digin_2

It sounds like a plan.

Magicman · February 12, 2012, 02:23:06 PM

Maybe we could also have a "Pear Tree" wedding.

lol

Al_Smith · February 12, 2012, 07:26:23 PM

:D Well to grit or not to grit ??

That aside the production of maple syrup has quite a history in these parts .Although Ohio was never one of the top producing states at one time it was suppliment on many farms when basically the weather was such it's about all they could do to make money .

Fact the delapidated relics of many an abandoned sugar camp can still be found throughout this area in small patchs of woods .

I know several who collect sap and a few that have regular gravity pans .The production volume is low but they enjoy doing it .

Dodgy Loner · February 14, 2012, 12:06:06 PM

Quote from: Magicman on February 12, 2012, 08:22:39 AM
Quote from: Al_Smith on February 12, 2012, 07:42:17 AM
but I draw the line with hominy made from corn meal which is what grits are .Corn leached with lye .

Just to clarify a bit. Hominy is leached with lye and has a completely different taste than grits. Grits are not leached, but are just simply course ground either white or yellow corn.

Magicman is correct. Hominy and grits are not one and the same.

In defense of hominy, though, the treatment of corn with a strong alkali (which can be either lye or lime) has a multitude of nutritional benefits - it converts some of the niacin into a form more absorbable by the body, improves the availability of the amino acids, and (at least in the lime-treated variant) supplements the calcium content. Look at the label next time you buy corn tortillas or tortilla chips - more than likely, the first ingredient is "ground corn treated with lime". The tradition of treating corn with lye or lime dates back thousands of year, as many Native Americans' maize-heavy diets would have resulted in the disease pellagra, if the maize had not been treated alkali to liberate the niacin.

But enough about corn. When did you say the maple syrup will be ready? ;D