The Co-op Food Stores

added 03/20/08

by Victoria Hicks

Native Americans were the first to enjoy maple syrup, called “sinzibuckwud” by the Algonquins, meaning “drawn from wood.” They recognized the sap as a source of energy and nutrition, using it in cooking or as a sweet drink.

Before the arrival of Europeans in the New World, the natives used clay pots to boil maple sap over simple fires protected only by a roof of tree branches—the original sugar shack. Since then, the sugar shack has become a gathering place to socialize and enjoy a traditional meal. One of my memories from growing up in Norwich is visiting a small shack on the outskirts of town, a real old Vermonter place, where the building was redolent with smoke.

My friend, Normand Lareau, reminisces about his childhood in St. Albans in the late 1930s and early 1940s, “In the spring, my uncles tapped the two huge maple trees in front of our house and my aunt made the syrup on the old iron stove in the kitchen. Mom gave us a bucket of maple sugar—light, moist and loose at the top—then dark and hard half-way down. When we were small, my brother, sister, and I and some boys from the neighborhood would sit on the side screened porch at night and dip our hands into the sugar. We just had the time of our life eating all that sugar with our hands. I couldn’t eat a teaspoonful today!”

In New England, maple syrup is the first crop of spring. Most syrup comes from the sugar maple, which produces more sap and sweeter sap than any other tree. The syrup season begins in mid-January in the more southerly areas and ends in mid-April in the northern regions, lasting four to six weeks in each place.

On average, it takes 40 gallons of maple sap to make 1 gallon of pure maple syrup. Canada makes more than 80 percent of the world’s maple syrup and the vast majority of this comes from Quebec. Vermont is the largest U.S. producer, followed by New York, Ohio, Michigan, New Hampshire, and a half-dozen other states. If you are lucky enough to visit a sugar shack, try “sugar on snow” made by pouring heated maple syrup onto packed snow to form taffy-like candy.

Vermont Johnny Cake Corn Bread
2 cups flour
4 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup corn meal
3 eggs, beaten
1 cup milk
1/2 cup pure Maple Syrup
1/4 cup shortening, melted

Preheat oven to 400°F. Mix eggs, milk, maple syrup and melted shortening. Add dry ingredients. Bake at 400° degrees for about 30 minutes in a 9 × 9-inch pan. Cool for ten minutes, turn out, and enjoy.

Maple Syrup Pie
Tarte au Sirop d’Érable

Serves 8 to 10 (8-inch pie)

Don’t be tempted to forgo the cream with this French-Canadian pie; it perfectly complements the dessert’s rich silkiness and balances the sweetness.

Pastry dough for a one-crust 8-inch pie
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs at room temperature
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup pure maple syrup (preferably dark amber)
2 tsp. unsalted butter, melted
Crème fraîche or unsweetened whipped cream

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Roll out dough into an 11-inch round on a lightly floured surface with a floured rolling pin and fit into an 8-inch (3-cup) glass pie plate. Trim excess dough and crimp edges decoratively. Whisk together brown sugar and eggs until creamy. Add heavy cream, syrup, and butter, and whisk until smooth. Pour filling into pie shell.

Bake pie in lower third of oven until pastry is golden and filling is puffed and looks dry but still trembles, 50 to 60 minutes. Cool on a rack to room temperature (filling will set as pie cools).

—Adapted from Restaurant Aux Anciens Canadiens, Quebec, Canada

Maple-Baked Sweet Potatoes

Serves 6

Parboiling the sweet potatoes shortens the cooking time and keeps them moist.

4 medium sweet potatoes (3 pounds), peeled and sliced 1½ inch thick
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper
3 Tbs. unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces
1/3 cup pure maple syrup
1/3 cup water

Preheat the oven to 400°.

In a large saucepan, cover the sweet potato slices with water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to moderate and cook until just tender, about 5 minutes. Drain well.

Arrange the sweet potatoes in a large gratin dish. Season with the salt and pepper, then dot with the butter pieces. Drizzle the maple syrup over the sweet potatoes, sprinkle with the water and bake for 15 minutes. Turn the sweet potatoes over and bake for about 25 minutes longer, until they’re tender and lightly browned. If necessary, broil the sweet potatoes for a minute or two before serving.
—Recipe by Jacques Pépin

Grilled Tuna

Serves 4

This savory sweet tuna is delicious cooked on the grill on under the oven broiler.

1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbs. maple syrup
1 Tbs. prepared horseradish
4 (3/4-inch-thick) tuna steaks (about 1½ pounds)

Combine first 3 ingredients in a heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag; add tuna. Seal and chill 1 hour, turning occasionally. Remove tuna from plastic bag and discard marinade. Grill tuna, covered with grill lid, over high heat (400° to 500°) 2 minutes on each side or to desired degree of doneness.

—Victoria Hicks

Maple-Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Serves 10

This unbelievably simple side dish counters the slight bitterness of Brussels sprouts with a sweet maple-syrup pan sauce.

1/4 cup canola oil
2 1/4 pounds baby Brussels sprouts or regular Brussels sprouts that are halved lengthwise
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons and softened
2 Tbs. light brown sugar
1/4 cup Grade A pure maple syrup
1 1/2 Tbs. cider vinegar
1 cup vacuum-packed roasted chestnuts, coarsely chopped (6 ounces)
1 Tbs. walnut oil

Heat the canola oil in a very large skillet until shimmering. Add the Brussels sprouts and season with salt and pepper, then cook over high heat without stirring until they are browned, about 2 minutes. Add the unsalted butter and brown sugar and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until the brown sugar is melted. Add the maple syrup and cook, stirring occasionally, until the Brussels sprouts are just crisp-tender, about 7 minutes. Stir in the cider vinegar. Add the chestnuts and walnut oil and cook until hot.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the Brussels sprouts and chestnuts to a bowl. Boil the cooking liquid over high heat until thickened slightly, about 2 minutes. Pour the sauce over the Brussels sprouts and serve.
—Adapted from Food & Wine, November 2005

Maple Vinaigrette Dressing

Makes about 1 1/2 cups

Put syrup on your salad with this recipe from “The Official Vermont Maple Cookbook,” published by the Vermont Maple Foundation.

1 tsp. dry mustard
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/4 cup balsamic or good quality wine, cider or maple vinegar
1/2 cup Pure Vermont Maple Syrup
1 Tbs. lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup olive oil
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground pepper

Combine mustard and basil in a small bowl. With a whisk, add vinegar, maple syrup, lemon juice and garlic. Add olive oil and continue whisking until ingredients are well combined. Season with salt and pepper. Refrigerated, the dressing will keep for several weeks.