Lately we've been renewing some "American traditions." There are a few things I miss now and then from America, and one thing hard to come by is maple syrup. We decided to try our hand at tapping the sap and at making the syrup. Yesterday Janis tapped the first trees, two of them bordering our yard. We were pleased at the flow of the sap, it must have been the right conditions. However, since the proportions are apx. 40 to 1, if you want to make any amount of syrup, you need a lot of sap. We started boiling it down, and understood why it is highly suggested to do it outside. When you get into the process of trying boil off that much water, to get the right sugar consistency, you get a lot of steam.
We decided to continue the process outside today, and here are a few pictures.
We even got to roast some marshmallows, another "traditon."
Who knows how the syrup will turn out, or if it will, and maybe we will only have a few spoonfulls in the end. But if we get to eat even one batch of American pancakes with our very own maple syrup, it will be worth it.
And we have had a lot of fun in the process. We even dreamed up our own business, since no one makes maple syrup here, though Janis decided it would be best left to retirement, as it takes a lot of time to do the boiling. He has been boiling this pan all afternoon. (Apx. 6 hours).
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