My aunt went to the US and Canada a couple of months ago and bought me back a huge bottle of maple syrup. So, what do I do with it? I’ve found a recipe for maple syrup flapjacks, but what else can I do? Pour it over doughnuts? Pancakes? Ice cream? Any suggestions will be warmly recieved.
The standard use is to pour it over pancakes, waffles, French toast, or similar breakfast foods (what do you ordinarily put on your pancakes, that you have to ask this?), and I imagine that this is the only way most Yanks ever use it. But you can use it pretty much the same way you’d use any other thick, sweet, sticky liquid (molasses, honey, etc.). Doughnuts might be a bit messy (though maple-based glazes are not uncommonly seen on doughnuts around here), but it should work just fine for ice cream.
Grade A or Grade B? Grade B has a stronger maple flavor. Grade A has a more delicate flavor and can be used as a sweetener for tea, for instance, without imparting too much of a maple flavor.
It definately goes over pancakes and waffles in either case. In recipes you can substitute 3/4 maple syrup for 1 cup of sugar and reduce by 3 tbls the amount of liquid ingredients.
If it’s the kind that’s not too maple-y, I use it as part of the total sweetener when making ice cream. There’s something about the molecular structure of liquid sugars like honey or maple syrup that helps the ice cream from being too ice-crystally and crisp after freezing. The milder-flavored maple syrup is rather neutral in taste so it doesn’t make the ice cream taste maple-y.
maple syrup is a great way to sweeten and add maple flavor to many savory dishes as well. I love to use maple syrup as a glaze on chicken or pork. Add it to a marinade. Maple really goes well the smokey flavors of anything grilled over flame. You get excellent caramelization with it too, so if you like sweet crunch on anything, add maple syrup and fire!
It’s good over oatmeal, if you like oatmeal.
Also, just tried this tonight over pancakes. Would also be good over angel food cake, pound cake, etc. Take 2 cups blackberries and 1 cup maple syrup. Heat to boiling and boil for 3 minutes. It makes a delicious blackberry syrup.
Mmm, yes.
Mix it with soy sauce (and a little ginger) and use it to make stir-fry.
Mix it with miso and slather it over salmon before broiling.
I like maple syrup on plain yogurt. I also make cranberry sauce using just frozen cranberries and maple syrup. It’s yummy.
mmm… maple. Let me second a maple glaze/grilling sauce. Use syrup, some thick hot sauce like Sriracha and some parsley, cumin and maybe some cilantro or tarragon. Baste on pork chops or tenderloin or chicken (any skinless piece) on the grill.
Man, I go through maple surple by the half gallon, every couple months or so. Yogurt, pancackes, etc., of course. I also prefer it for baking bread; curry soup; with balsamic vinegar it makes a nice glaze for skirt steak–what CAN’T you use it in?
I guess you could use it in recipes.
But . . . why?
Pure maple syrup is why God invented pancakes, waffles, and French toast.
And baked beans! How could I have forgotten; maple syrup is essential for good baked beans.
Incidentally, even if you do only use it for a few things, and it takes you a while to go through it, don’t worry about it going bad. It might form an off-white crystalline crust after a while, but this is just sugar, and is completely harmless. If it gets too thick to pour, you can heat it up to re-liquify it, possibly adding a small amount of water so it’ll stay liquid when it cools.
Here are 313 more ideas for you. (And damn you to hell, because now I have to go make pancakes! Maybe even ones with berries and walnuts in them.)
Chugging contest. (ref: Super Troopers)
Québecois snack time:
A slice of bread. Maple syrup in a bowl. Dip, and enjoy!
For a little more craziness, put peanut butter on the bread first.
Infuse your maple syrup with as god awful amount of Lingonberries or goose berries. Report back with your findings.
Acadienne snack time :
Eggs in syrup:
Boil a couple cups of maple syrup. Break eggs into syrup. Let cook, then eat warm.
Thanks for all the suggestions guys. It looks like I’ll be busy with maple syrup for ages then. The little brother did actually just want to drink it :boggle:.
The syrup itself tastes (well smells, I haven’t tasted it yet) very maple-y, so I’m guessing its grade B.
Now, as for the pouring it over pancakes for breakfast idea, I like that idea, Bonzer likes that idea, and the little brother positively loves that idea. However, the only pancakes I know how to make are thin crepe type pancakes, which I generally don’t make for breakfast, but tend to make of an evening, and eat with savoury fillings, or if I’m feeling like something sweet, Nutella. How do I make American/Canadian style pancakes then?
Chronos, baked beans? And maple syrup? How? (In the UK, baked beans are basically made in tomato sauce and comes in cans.)
I like the idea of using it in glazes, marinades and stir frys too; more uses for maple syrup than I ever imagined, and please keep the suggestions coming – I can’t actually eat too much sweet stuff, but I can make it.
marinate pork chops in maple syrup, in fridge, over night.
when nearly ready to cook, add soy sauce, a little more maple syrup (if necessary - i.e if you used too little in marinating, and your chops look to be drying at all) add your usual combo of pork chop spices to taste, plus some tobasco or other pepper sauce. let sit for an hour or so, then, while grill (indoor electric, or preferably propane or charcoal bbq) heats, massage marinade into the chops.
grill medium to well, brushing on a glaze of remaining marinade every minute or so, to increase carmelization.
serve on a bed of rice, with a side of your favourite veggies – i.e steamed broccoli & grilled bell pepper wedges, or whatever you prefer.
The interesting thing about the savory type applications is that the intention is not to create a flavoring mixture, or a meal, that’s too noticeably sweet. In stir-fry, for example, I may use a proportion of a quarter cup of soy sauce to a teaspoon of maple syrup; the slightly sweet undercurrent has the effect of rounding out the saltiness of the soy and filling out the overall flavor profile rather than making the dish itself really all that sugary. (It’s a little like the sweetness you can taste in ketchup if you’re really concentrating on separating the various flavors but that you don’t otherwise notice.) The maple component sort of sits off to the side, contributing a bit of an earthy quality. It’s hard to describe but I bet you’ll be a convert after you try it.