I always ensure the house is filled with lots of maple syrup. My kids adore the stuff, especially with their favorite breakfasts. People eat it on things like toast, waffles, pancakes, french toast, or even on pasta. I began to worry at some point because I thought I was probably indulging them with too much sugar (actually, we all have a sweet tooth in the family; I, myself, can’t resist a piece or two of rich, gooey maple candy once in a while). So I did some research of my own and was surprised to find out that maple syrup is one of the very few sweet treats that can actually be good for my kids. A benefit is that it has less calories then a person would think, and has far fewer amounts of sugar than honey does. Secondly, it’s an excellent source of two trace minerals – zinc and manganese – which are important for energy building and the body’s immune system and antioxidant defences.
So what was a mom to do after knowing that her picky eaters of kids were actually consuming a healthy treat without them realizing it? To get it started simply!
Now I use pure canadian maple syrup as a sweetener for their oatmeal, to pour on top of baked squash and sweet potatoes, and to drizzle over their peanut butter and banana sandwich (skip the jelly, will you?). My kids also love pure maple butter on their waffles and drizzled on their pancakes.To make maple butter, just blend 1 pound of softened butter with ½ cup maple syrup, roll between parchment paper, store in the fridge, and cut into discs as needed.For an easy snack or school lunchbox treat, I make maple cookies, which is really just low-fat oatmeal or plain cookies with a maple glaze on top. To make the glaze, just combine 1 C organic maple candy, ¼ C confectioners’ sugar, 1 tsp maple extract, and ¼ C unsalted butter in a pan, medium-heat until just about to boil, then dip or brush the top of your cookies with the glaze while it’s still hot. Let the cookies cool before you eat them, they taste even better the next day.
Here’s something to keep in mind when you go shopping, really look for organic and pure maple syrup instead of picking up cheap flavored and colored synthetic syrup. It is generally more expensive, but because you don’t get diluted syrup you get a richer, tastier flavor and is worth whatever small amount of extra money it costs. Keep in mind a simple rule; the lighter the syrup, the more subtle the flavor will be. Reserve the darker, amber-colored variety for cooking.Lastly just like any food you need to make sure you only eat a moderate amount of maple syrup (even organic sweeteners can be bad) and please please brush those little pirly white teeth!
Tags: Food Recipes Drink