This is going to be a quick post, but I finally found information on maple syrup in Maine and Connecticut which I couldn't find before. Well, I had CT info, but it looks like they put up a new website just for Connecticut Maple Producers.
Apparently, Massachusetts is the most gung-ho about maple with their March is Massachusetts Maple Month celebration. Basically, this means that sugar houses all over the state are open to the public, many of them serving breakfast.
Also, Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire are having some type of maple syrup festival this weekend, so if you want to O.D. on maple syrup, this weekend is your chance.
Vermont is having its 6th Annual Maple Open House Weekend. Apparently it placed in the top 10 winter events of Vermont, by the Vermont Chamber of Commerce.
Maine is having Maple Syrup Sunday,
New Hampshire is celebrating its New Hampshire Maple Weekend this weekend. Stonewall Farm (Keene, NH) is joining in the celebration with, among other maple-related events, a sap-gathering event where teams of people and draft horse run around the farm collecting sap from buckets. If I wasn't going to Western Mass this weekend, I'd be up in Keene watching the competition.
Nothing exciting appears to be happening in the states of CT or RI this weekend. It looks like maybe maple syrup isn't as big a deal in those states, but there's plenty to do in the others, so we won't be too sad about that.
On deck for this weekend, instead of Parker's Maple Barn (it's open year-round so I figured I'd better go somewhere that's only open for a few weeks before it's too late), is the North Hadley Sugar Shack in North Hadley, MA. I've never had their maple products, but I can personally attest to the fact that they have the best soft-serve ice cream (and waffle cones) in the Happy Valley. I went to UMass Amherst--twice--and the second time around, my friend Tim and I did extensive, unscientific research to find the best soft serve in the area. They have their own maple soft-serve and make the waffle cone right when you order your ice cream. And they also have a petting zoo with goats, sheep, bunnies, and chickens. Some of the chickens have feathers on their legs so when the run around they look like they're wearing pantaloons! They put in the petting zoo when I was in school and two of the goats, Rodeo and Licorice, were still little goatlets. I guess that would be "kid" if you want to be techincal. Anyway, they were adorable. They're all grown up but they're still there, as far as I know. You get to go in the pen and walk around with all the animals, which is very cool--as opposed to petting them behind a fence.
So, if you're in the Amherst area this weekend, stop by the Sugar Shack for pancakes and maybe I'll see you there.
I guess that wasn't such a quick post after all :)
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Thursday, March 8, 2007
Who knew corn fritters were so yummy?!
So, the maple syrup tour of New England isn't panning out quite as planned. Not that there isn't an abundance of places to find it, it's just that my schedule got really hectic all of a sudden. Apparently, when you're getting married, you have to actually do things to plan it. My tactic of procrastinating and hoping that everything will just work itself out on its own wasn't working. And then there's the whole school thing that gets in the way sometimes. But, that's all beside the point...
So, Southface Farm in Ashfield, MA was the first (and only, so far) stop on the tour. For being in the middle of nowhere, it was surprisingly easy to find. It helped that I took a cheesemaking workshop in Ashfield, so I sort of knew where I was going.
Cheese. Let me go off on a tangent about that before talking about maple syrup. Once upon a time, maybe fours years ago, I bought a cheese cookbook. In the back it had all sorts of mail-order information. I'm not sure exactly what you needed to mail order: maybe special cheese or something. Out of habit, I glanced through the list to see if there were any local places listed. I saw the New England Cheesemaking Supply Company (ok, not so local, but it's within a reasonable driving distance of 2 hours). They had a website that I checked out and saw that they had cheesemaking workshops. Oh yeah. Somehow, I convinced two of my friends to come with me and we all signed up. It was fantastic! Who knew there was so much to know about cheese? Actually, I did know, but I had never spent 8 hours in a row thinking about it before. I heartily recommend taking one if you're interested. You'd be surprised at how easy it is to make soft cheeses. Even if you aren't adventurous, there's a 30-minute mozzarella kit that is really really easy and you make it with powdered milk. Having been permanently scarred by being served only powdered skim milk for the first 15 years of my life, I thought that sounded gross. Imagine having to inspect each glass of milk you pour, so as not to end up drinking a lump that wasn't mixed in. Yuck. Eventually, my brother and sisters and I staged a milk boycott until our parents started buying regular milk. I think my mom must have been on our side, because it didn't take long to convince them (and my parents don't give in easily, believe me). My dad still drinks the powdered stuff, though.
Ok, that was a tangent on a tangent. Let me get back to the topic at hand... The powdered milk does make a great batch of fresh mozzarella. Take the cheesemaking workshop in Ashfield, MA if you can. Now, back to maple syrup at Southface Farm and their fabulous corn fritters.
Never having had one before, I ordered one. It came out steaming hot and was delicious--especially drowned in a pool of their own grade A amber maple syrup. Mmm-mmm! The rest of the food was good, too. I had eggs and cinnamon toast; Brian had French bread French toast. They use a lot of local produce in their breakfasts, which I loved (locally-baked bread, local eggs, etc.) It was still a little early in the season, so they weren't sugaring yet, but that was two weeks ago. If the weather out there has cooperated, they should be sugaring by now. They are open for breakfast through the middle of April, if anyone is interested in making the trip. It's in a beautiful area of the state, so it's a really nice drive. If you head out Rte. 2, I recommend stopping at Shelburne Falls Coffee Roasters in Shelburne Falls, MA (1335 Mohawk Trail, which is Rte. 2 in that part of the state). If you're headed west, they're on your left. Good coffee and hot chocolate. Brian and I got Mexican HC and it had cayenne pepper in it. Good stuff. They have a funky cafe space with room to hang out, if you want to stop in and relax.
Next stop on the tour, I think, will be Parker's Maple Barn in Mason, NH on March 18th, so stay tuned. They serve coffee made from beans roasted with their own maple syrup.
So, Southface Farm in Ashfield, MA was the first (and only, so far) stop on the tour. For being in the middle of nowhere, it was surprisingly easy to find. It helped that I took a cheesemaking workshop in Ashfield, so I sort of knew where I was going.
Cheese. Let me go off on a tangent about that before talking about maple syrup. Once upon a time, maybe fours years ago, I bought a cheese cookbook. In the back it had all sorts of mail-order information. I'm not sure exactly what you needed to mail order: maybe special cheese or something. Out of habit, I glanced through the list to see if there were any local places listed. I saw the New England Cheesemaking Supply Company (ok, not so local, but it's within a reasonable driving distance of 2 hours). They had a website that I checked out and saw that they had cheesemaking workshops. Oh yeah. Somehow, I convinced two of my friends to come with me and we all signed up. It was fantastic! Who knew there was so much to know about cheese? Actually, I did know, but I had never spent 8 hours in a row thinking about it before. I heartily recommend taking one if you're interested. You'd be surprised at how easy it is to make soft cheeses. Even if you aren't adventurous, there's a 30-minute mozzarella kit that is really really easy and you make it with powdered milk. Having been permanently scarred by being served only powdered skim milk for the first 15 years of my life, I thought that sounded gross. Imagine having to inspect each glass of milk you pour, so as not to end up drinking a lump that wasn't mixed in. Yuck. Eventually, my brother and sisters and I staged a milk boycott until our parents started buying regular milk. I think my mom must have been on our side, because it didn't take long to convince them (and my parents don't give in easily, believe me). My dad still drinks the powdered stuff, though.
Ok, that was a tangent on a tangent. Let me get back to the topic at hand... The powdered milk does make a great batch of fresh mozzarella. Take the cheesemaking workshop in Ashfield, MA if you can. Now, back to maple syrup at Southface Farm and their fabulous corn fritters.
Never having had one before, I ordered one. It came out steaming hot and was delicious--especially drowned in a pool of their own grade A amber maple syrup. Mmm-mmm! The rest of the food was good, too. I had eggs and cinnamon toast; Brian had French bread French toast. They use a lot of local produce in their breakfasts, which I loved (locally-baked bread, local eggs, etc.) It was still a little early in the season, so they weren't sugaring yet, but that was two weeks ago. If the weather out there has cooperated, they should be sugaring by now. They are open for breakfast through the middle of April, if anyone is interested in making the trip. It's in a beautiful area of the state, so it's a really nice drive. If you head out Rte. 2, I recommend stopping at Shelburne Falls Coffee Roasters in Shelburne Falls, MA (1335 Mohawk Trail, which is Rte. 2 in that part of the state). If you're headed west, they're on your left. Good coffee and hot chocolate. Brian and I got Mexican HC and it had cayenne pepper in it. Good stuff. They have a funky cafe space with room to hang out, if you want to stop in and relax.
Next stop on the tour, I think, will be Parker's Maple Barn in Mason, NH on March 18th, so stay tuned. They serve coffee made from beans roasted with their own maple syrup.
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