Make your own maple sugar and maple butter

Paul Pospisil | Mar 23, 2016

Maple syrup season is in full swing. From the buckets hanging in the maple bushes as you drive around, there are a lot of back yard syrup makers following this traditional pioneer art. Most new producers will be happy to just make some syrup for their pancakes or breakfast cereal but the more adventurous ones will go the next step and try making other pure maple products, like maple sugar or maple spread.

Here are the recipes for both of these delicious maple products, the way we used to make them in earlier times at Beaver Pond Estates when we operated the sugar bush every spring.

To make your own maple sugar and maple spread:

Maple sugar and maple butter, also called maple spread are made essentially the same way, with only the temperature and finishing method being different. Both start with pure maple syrup, preferably No. 1 Light or Extra light. The lighter the syrup, the better the sugar or spread that it will make. A convenient amount of syrup to process for home use is one-litre batches, done in a 3 to 4 litre stainless steel saucepan with a thick bottom. Use an accurate kitchen thermometer to check the boiling temperature. Work on a sunny day for best results as the change in boiling points from atmospheric pressure will have the least effect.

If you do the boiling on the kitchen stove, you have to watch it constantly. Even walking away for a minute, it will boil over, leaving you with a sticky mess that’s tough to clean. If you can, its much better to work outdoors.

Maple sugar:

Boil the syrup until it reaches 240 deg F, or 28 degrees above the boiling point of water. Remove from heat, cool partially to 180-200 deg F, then stir until it starts to whiten crystallize. Pour into moulds and let harden. For extra creamy consistency, continue stirring until it becomes thick and creamy before packing into moulds.

Maple spread (maple butter):

Maple butter is the more difficult to make as you want the end result to be smooth and creamy with no detectable crystals.

Boil the syrup until it reaches about 235 deg F, or 22-24 deg F above the boiling point of water. Chill the thickened syrup rapidly in ice water until it is cool, around 70 deg F, being careful not to disturb the syrup. Stir with a wooden spoon until it whitens and starts to lose its glossy look. Quickly pour into jars, avoiding leaving any air bubbles. The trick here is to pour at just the right moment, when fine crystallization is complete but before it stiffens too thick to pour. The maple butter should be smooth and easily spreadable with no detectable crystals.

To get the temperature accurate, you can “calibrate” your thermometer by checking the temperature at which water boils. Water boils at 212 deg F at sea level. As atmospheric pressure drops, it will boil at a lower temperature, and it boils at a higher temperature when the barometer is rising. On a cloudy day, with a storm coming, it can boil at 210 or even 209 degrees. Once you know the boiling point of water, just add 28 to it to get the right temperature for sugar.

Don’t be discouraged if your first attempts result in an imperfect product. It takes a lot of practice to get it just right. In any case, you can enjoy whatever lumpy concoction you’ve made because it’s got that same lovely maple syrup flavour. And, of course, next year, it will turn out as smooth as silk!

Be sure to come to the Annual Maberly Maple Festival Pancake Brunch at the Maberly Hall on Saturday April 16, 10am to 1pm to celebrate the end of the maple syrup season. Volunteers from the Maberly Agricultural Society will be serving thick, delicious pancakes topped with the best quality new maple syrup made by local producers. The price is still the same, $10 with baked beans, sausages and coffee included, half price for children under 12. As well, you will be able to buy new maple syrup and fine, creamy maple butter made locally. Gordon Patterson will be on hand to tell you how it’s done!

Paul Pospisil is the owner of Beaver Pond Estates, Maberly