What’s the sweetest part of an Adirondack spring? Maple syrup!

It’s mud season. Frosty nights and sunny, warm days cause the sap to flow.

It’s time for Maple Weekends. During the last two weekends in March, maple producers open to the public with pancake breakfasts, tours and music. Our local sugar bushes include Uihlein, Paul Smith’s, Whiteface Mountain, Mark Twain Sugarworks, Rivermede, South Meadow Farm and Paul Smiths VIC. They share their craft with anyone who wants to see how it is done, taste syrup and purchase maple products.

The tradition began in western NY’s Wyoming County in 1995, when a handful of maple producers organized a one-day event, Maple Sunday, to promote maple products. The idea spread and the event quickly grew to include maple farms throughout New York state and later, Vermont.

Carrot salad (Provided photo — Yvona Fast)

Once sap begins to flow, sugaring is labor-intensive and time-consuming: tapping trees, keeping the tubing in good condition, collecting, refining and boiling. It takes forty gallons of sap to make just one gallon of syrup. Mike Farrell, author of The Sugarmaker’s Companion, explains that modern vacuum tubing and reverse osmosis make maple syrup easier and cheaper to produce. The tubes also mean that trees are less scarred by repeated drilled taps.

Pure Adirondack maple syrup is a local, sustainable product. By buying syrup, you reduce your carbon footprint while supporting local producers.

Maple trees help pull carbon out of the atmosphere. They also help conserve our forests, and the ecosystems they’re part of, intact and healthy for our grandchildren. In contrast, corn syrup production uses lots of fertilizers and pesticides, polluting the environment; and most corn today is genetically modified.

In addition to syrup, maple products include maple sugar, maple butter, maple candy, cotton candy and maple cream, a buttery spread to put on toast or use as a dip. Commercial products made with syrup include salad dressings, mustards, barbecue and grilling sauces, granola and maple-coated nuts. Maple water, the by-product of making syrup by osmosis, is another natural beverage, as is maple sap — which has been viewed as a spring tonic in many cultures. Sap is a great base for brewing beer. With a home soda maker, sap — which contains about 2% sugar — can be made into a carbonated beverage. Sap can also replace water in soups, stews, breads and other dishes.

The gift of the maple tree has been proclaimed a healthy treat, joining blueberries, quinoa, flax and kale in the ranks of superfoods. “Syrup produced from tree sap is one of the healthiest all-natural sweeteners,” says Mike Farrell, author of The Sugarmaker’s Companion. In contrast, high fructose corn syrup — which sweetens many of our commercial products like soft drinks and cookies — is a highly processed industrial product often contaminated with mercury.

Researchers have documented that maple syrup is more nutritious than any other common sweetener. Scientists at the University of Rhode Island describe it as a good source of unique compounds and antioxidants that can improve immunity, reduce inflammation, prevent cancer and manage Type 2 diabetes.

Potassium, calcium, zinc, manganese, iron and magnesium are essential elements for maintaining good health found in syrup. Zinc is important for immunity; calcium and manganese help maintain bone health; potassium for heart health. Maple also contains trace amounts of phosphorous, malic and citric acids, as well as some amino acids. In contrast, table sugar does not contain any minerals.

Even more important are the naturally occurring antioxidants, polyphenols and other phytochemicals. There are at least 54 — and five are unique to maple syrup. These compounds, which prevent the oxidation and aging of body cells, aren’t found in other natural sweeteners. A tablespoon of maple syrup has 50 calories.

While table sugar, sucrose, is a chemical compound of fructose and glucose, in maple syrup the fructose and glucose molecules are mixed in a solution rather than chemically bound together. Our bodies absorb maple’s natural sugars more slowly than processed cane sugar. It is easier to digest and has a lower glycemic index than honey or sucrose (table sugar).

Maple syrup is a healthy, delicious, completely natural product, made without pesticides, herbicides or chemical fertilizers.

Syrup has many uses besides a topping for pancakes, waffles, French toast or ice cream. It can be used in cooking and baking; indeed, during the Civil War it took the place of sugar in the North. Use it as a glaze for ham, chicken or pork and in dishes from baked beans to rice pudding. You can easily substitute syrup for cane sugar in baking by using one and a half cups of syrup for each cup of sugar and decreasing the liquid the recipe by half. Add a pinch more of baking soda and decrease the oven temperature by 25 degrees.

A drizzle of maple syrup makes almost any dish irresistible.

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Maple Roasted Nuts

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Ingredients:

2 cups walnuts or pecans

Pinch sea salt, optional

1/4 cup maple syrup

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Directions:

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In a cast iron or other heavy skillet, toast nuts in a single layer over medium-high heat until they become fragrant and change color, just 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Toss with sea salt. Pour syrup over the nuts in the hot pan, and stir quickly to coat. Transfer to wax paper or parchment paper. Using a spatula, keep the nuts moving as they cool to prevent them from sticking together. Store in a cool, dry place. Eat as a snack or as a topping for a fruit salad.

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Carrot Salad with Maple Vinaigrette

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Ingredients:

Maple Vinaigrette

3 Tablespoons cider vinegar

2 Tablespoons maple syrup

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 Tablespoon prepared mustard

1/2 teaspoon thyme

1 teaspoon salt

For the salad:

2 cups lettuce, shredded or torn

2 medium carrots (2 cups, shredded)

2 ribs celery (2 cups, sliced thin)

6 green onions

1 cup walnuts

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Directions:

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Combine vinaigrette ingredients in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Shake well.

Shred lettuce and carrots; thinly slice the celery and green onions. Combine in salad bowl. Shake dressing, pour over and stir well to combine. Set aside for an hour; longer if possible.

Before serving, toast walnuts by spreading on a cookie sheet and toasting in a hot (425) oven for two minutes. Be careful not to burn. Stir walnuts into salad right before serving. Or use maple roasted nuts.

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Maple glazed Ham

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Glaze Ingredients:

3/4 cup chicken broth

1/3 cup applesauce

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 garlic clove, smashed

1 teaspoon cornstarch, dissolved in 1 teaspoon cold water

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Directions:

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Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce to simmer and cook about 10 minutes. Pour over ham during last hour of baking. Baste occasionally.