What Can You Do With Maple Syrup (Besides Pancakes)?
What can you do with maple syrup (other than put it on pancakes)? See our 9 sweet and savory recipes using real maple syrup, including maple teriyaki chicken, maple mashed sweet potatoes, and maple-glazed vegetables.
The Story of Maple Syrup
According to one legend, a Native American chief stuck his tomahawk into a maple tree one spring night. In the morning, he pulled it out and went off hunting. His wife had placed a container under the tree, and the clear, watery sap dripped into it. Later, she needed water to cook some meat. She thought the liquid in the bucket was water, so she used it. As it cooked, the water evaporated until syrup was left. The sweet meat was the best they had ever tasted, and soon, the entire community was cooking with maple sap.
Maple Syrup Trivia
- Maple sugar was the most common sweetener in the northern United States and Canada until the late 1800s, when white sugar took its place. (Maple syrup is still a healthier option for a sweetener than refined sugar!)
- The northern United States and southeastern Canada are the only places in the world where sugar maples grow naturally and where weather conditions are right to harvest sap.
9 Maple Syrup Recipes
1. Maple Teriyaki Chicken
A hint of maple mellows the sweet-sour flavor of teriyaki. For party food, prepare the recipe using chicken wings.
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2. Maple-Orange Glazed Vegetables
This easy glaze can be added to a variety of vegetables and is particularly good with baked squash—just brush it on during the last few minutes of cooking.
3. Maple BBQ Ribs
Cook these ribs on the grill or in the oven. Our readers say it best: “EASY and LOVED by all my guests!”
4. Maple Baked Beans
This maple-kissed version of baked beans makes an excellent accompaniment to our maple-glazed BBQ ribs.
5. Maple Mashed Sweet Potatoes
Plain baked sweet potatoes are great; this way of preparing them is sublime. Excellent with poultry dishes.
6. Maple Apple Crisp
This version of the classic apple crisp makes its own lovely thick sauce as it bakes.
7. Maple Pecan Gooey Bars
Our Maple Pecan Pie Bars are sweet and salty and mouthwateringly delicious! Think of them as a portable pecan pie!
8. Maple Granola
This healthful granola is great with yogurt or eaten straight out of the container!
Here at the Almanac, we call maple syrup, “liquid gold.” How is maple syrup made? Read this article about, “Maple Syrup: A Natural Wonder.”
Catherine Boeckmann
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WE used to put Maple Syrup right on buttered toast; delicious !!!
Maple syrup has been a staple over the years. When as a kid of 6 living in Jamaica VT about 1944, my job was to collect sap on the steep hill side. A fellow worked at the local sawmill and would walk by the house. I'd sit with the bucket of sap at the road side and he would pick it up and carry it to the house, about 200 feet. I knew I appreciated it and I think he got a kick about it. A daily routine. My mother boiled it on the kitchen stove and remember the wall paper sagging. During the war, sugar was rationed, so the syrup, whatever color was needed. Good times.
The 2 ingredients I use when cooking are garlic and Maple Grove Farms Maple Syrup ,.
