In this adventure we put our home made maple syrup evaporator to good use by boiling down over 50 liters of sap into maple syrup at our small cabin in the woods. This is about making something sweet from practically nothing, from liquid sap from a maple tree to delicious maple syrup which we drizzle over fresh made pancakes on our wood stove.
Over the course of the season we will see just how much maple syrup we can make. To make 1 liter of syrup, we need to collect and boil down 4 liters of sap. This takes a lot of time and patience to boil off most of the water to leave mostly sugar in the syrup.
Spring is really a great time to get outside and catch up on all the missed sunshine and get much needed fresh air and vitamin D from the sun.
Collecting sap is done with a pull sled provided by Pelican company in containers we got for free from the bakery section at the grocery store.
We drill in holes in the sugar maples at an upward angle and the sap will flow anytime the temperatures change from below freezing to above freezing. The sap will stop flowing as the season wears on, so timing is critical. The sap starts off really clear, but will be richer and darker as the season goes on.
We filter our sap through a t-shirt, but you may want to use something finer like cheese clothe. We find that the extra stuff just enhances the flavor profile of the final syrup.
To make maple sugar, just keep boiling the syrup and it will boil off all the water leaving just sugar. Syrup forms at 212F or 107C and should be removed, cooled and then stored in tight containers. It can be kept frozen for a very long time, or refrigerated for a few months.
If mold forms, scoop it off and you can still eat it, but the flavor will be off.
Serve fresh maple syrup over pancakes, french toast, or just drink it straight up.
I'll show you how to tap a tree, talk about the right conditions for sap flow, the concentration of sugar in sap, how we collect and boil the sap from start to finish! I'll show you how maple syrup is made using a cheap homemade evaporator!
I'll show you have to make a homemade maple syrup evaporator for cheap or FREE!
I'll introduce my real brother and tour his modern homestead, the location of the Native American garden and show you all the firewood he collects for free, and how he stores and cuts it.
Use code "WoodBeard" to get 10% off ASAT Camo: www.asatcamo.com
23 авг 2024
