Maple Rhubarb Pudding Cake

Fresh Picked Rhubarb

Fresh Picked Rhubarb

You know it’s truly Spring when you have fresh rhubarb for sauce, pies and cakes!  I make my rhubarb sauce with Maple Syrup or Maple Sugar instead of white sugar. I also substitute the white sugar in the cake with Maple Sugar.   The maple rhubarb sauce can be eaten as is, used over pound cake or ice cream.

Sauce ingredients:

Maple Rhubarb Sauce

Maple Rhubarb Sauce

4 cups of fresh rhubarb

1 cup Maple Syrup

2 tsp butter Read more

Substitute sugar for Maple Syrup and Maple Syrup Cooking Equivalents

Quick word association – I say maple syrup you say……pancakes right?  I certainly agree with this – I love maple syrup on pancakes or more accurately I enjoy a little pancake with a lot of syrup!!  Maple syrup is a natural sugar loaded with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that makes a great substitution for processed sugar.

I use maple syrup everyday in my coffee.  I also use it to sweeten plain yogurt, in smoothies and on my oatmeal.  I substitute sugar in my baking with maple syrup.  Winter squash and carrots are extra yummy when baked with syrup!  Top off any meal with a Vermont tradition of maple syrup on ice cream.

Maple syrup and coffee

Maple syrup substitutions for granulated sugar:

1 cup granulated sugar = 3/4 – 1 cup maple syrup  If you like sweeter food use 1 cup , if you want it slightly less sweet use 3/4 cup

There is more moisture in maple syrup so you should decrease other liquids (milk, oil,etc.) by 2-4 tablespoons overall (not each type of liquid).

If the batter needs to rise add 1/4 to 1/2 tsp of baking soda to neutralize the slight acidity in maple syrup.  If the recipe already has buttermilk, sour milk or sour cream this will do the same as the baking soda so do not add more.

Decrease the oven temperature by 25* as syrup tends to caramelize the top and edges.

 

Baked Maple Glazed Baby Carrots

Vary this recipe based on how many your feeding.  I either use whole carrots ( so my bunnies get the scraps!) or I cheat and use a bag of baby carrots.

1 bag of baby carrots

1 – 1/2 cups syrup

3 Tbsp butter

Salt and Pepper to taste

Parsley

Mix all the ingredients in a large glass baking dish.  Spread evenly.  Bake at 350* about 35 minutes or until tender.   Enjoy!

 

When the days begin to lengthen the cold begins to strengthen

Morning sun January 2015

Rising sun Stevens Mills Slide, VT

Invariably in January in northern Vermont we get some bone chilling, finger numbing, hurts to breath days.  Just as surely, I hear Grampa Hue’s voice saying “as the days begin to lengthen, the cold begins to strengthen”.

Fence posts in January

Fence posts near Johnson, VT

This has been one of the first days of sunshine in a long time – so no matter what the thermometer says (-4 the last time I looked), the day just doesn’t seem so bad!

Missisquoi River January

Missisquoi River near Richford, VT

I stopped to watch an otter play on the ice this morning on the Missisquoi River then had to stop and take a picture of the railroad crossing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finches at feeder

Now for another cup of coffee sweetened with  maple syrup and some birdwatching – from inside the house!

Pinnacle Mountain in January 2015

Pinnacle Mountain Canada