With the luxury of having over a hundred trees on our property, the husband had a great idea to try and make our own Maple Syrup. At first I was dreading this idea - If you knew my husband and I we always get these "crazy" ideas and do not like to be bored.
26 trees tapped, three weeks later and a lot of boiling we have syrup! Ontario Grade Dark Fresh Maple Syrup.
Have you ever wondered why "real" maple syrup cost so much compared to Aunt Jemima's? Well let me tell you, for every 10 gallons of raw sap you get about one quart or so of syrup and you have to hope and pray your tree's start flowing and the weather is on your side for it. Each batch took a total of 8-10 hours of boil time in both the evaporator that we made and then the stove top that we used outside (DO NOT TRY TO BOIL IT DOWN INSIDE YOUR HOUSE).
With our first year making our own maple syrup, we will sure to be doing it again next year. However, next year we won't start two weeks late into the season...
This year our syrup batch was over 8 litres, that is a lot of syrup for a family of two, so we have been using them as gifts - another way to save a little money.
If you are looking to give the maple syrup making a try, be sure you have the proper maple trees and do your research. Side Note: Don't let your husband use your favourite Hudson Bay Company oven mitts you got as a wedding present.. RIP my beautiful oven mitts. So if anyone wants to trade replacement mitts for 250ml of Maple Syrup please let me know!
Well, time for endless meals of Pancakes and Waffles... Until next time when I am in a Maple Syrup High.
Homestead Wife
xx
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