Maple Raspberry Vinaigrette

It's hot and humid, which means I'm not cooking or grilling.  That means it's salad for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (okay, not really for breakfast, but you get my drift). I love a good salad, and right now at the farmer's markets and farm stands there are plenty of greens, carrots, cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, and radishes to make those salads tasty and beautiful.  Last year I posted my Maple Cream Vinaigrette, a nice light dressing that I absolutely love. But, I was getting bored with the same dressing on every salad.  I decided to switch it up a bit.  I love fruit, and what else would be as perfect to add to a summer dressing?  I missed most of strawberry (my favorite) season while vacationing in Alaska, so I decided on the next best thing - raspberries!  Patti Powers of Cheshire Garden makes the perfect addition to my recipe - Queen of Hearts Raspberry Vinegar. Here's another easy recipe for you to enjoy!

Maple Raspberry Vinaigrette

2/3 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 Cup Woodard's Sugar House Pure Maple Syrup
1/2 Cup Cheshire Garden Queen of Hearts Raspberry Vinegar
1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
1/2 Teaspoon Salt

Combine all ingredients in a mason jar.  Secure lid and shake until thoroughly combined.

Like I mentioned with the last vinaigrette recipe, I was skeptical at first about making my own dressings.  I thought it would be much more involved and take a lot longer than it actually does.  This is another simple, easy to make recipe that takes me about 5 minutes to whip up.  Needing to "beef up" your salad?  Using the vinaigrette, marinate chicken (or steak) overnight and grill. Add grilled meat, cucumbers, and fresh raspberries to your favorite salad greens topped with our Maple Coated Almonds and the Maple Raspberry Vinaigrette. Yum!
Not sold yet on making your own salad dressings?  That's okay.  We do have them for sale at Fresh Chicks Farmer's Market (Mondays 11-3 at Monadnock Community Hospital) and at The Farmers' Market of Keene (Tuesdays and Saturdays from 9-1 on Gilbo Ave).  

Maple Sugar Cookies

I tend to use maple a lot when I cook.  Maybe a bit too much.  For instance, I use it so often that my husband asks if we can have a meal that doesn't have maple in it (say, what?!).  So, I have laid off the maple induced dinner dishes, and have begun adding to my arsenal of maple dessert recipes (thank you, Pinterest!).  That being said, I don't really bake all that often.  Cooking dinner is one thing (gotta eat), but baking is an "extra" that you have to set aside time for.  And all those extra dishes to wash... not my idea of fun.  But, I found a recipe that makes the mountain of dishes and couple extra hours in the kitchen worth while.  Soft maple sugar cookies.  Yup, a simple maple cookie.  The recipe sounded easy enough, and though I was sure my cookies would not turn out like those in the pictures, I was determined to give it a shot.  I did alter the original recipe (found here) to include more maple (imagine that!) and used our famous pure maple cream instead of the maple icing included in the original recipe.  The cookies came out picture perfect and were hubby and kiddo approved!  

Maple Sugar Cookies
1/2 Cup Softened Butter
1/2 Cup Shortening
1 1/2 Cups Woodard's Sugar House Pure Maple Sugar
1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
1/4 Cup Woodard's Sugar House Pure Maple Syrup
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Cream of Tartar
Pinch of Salt
3 Egg Yolks
1/2 tsp Vanilla
1 3/4 Cups Flour
Woodard's Sugar House Pure Maple Cream

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  In a large bowl, beat butter and shortening on medium speed until thoroughly combined.  Add the maple sugar, brown sugar, maple syrup, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt. Mix on medium speed, scraping sides of bowl as needed.  Beat in eggs and vanilla.  Add flour.  Scoop cookie dough into 1" balls and place 3 inches apart on cookie sheet (spacing is important! These cookies spread!).  Bake for 14 minutes, until edges are slightly browned (tops will still look soft, but will settle as cookies cool).  Cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes, then cool on wire rack.  Once cookies are cooled, warm the maple cream in the microwave and drizzle over top of cookies.  Enjoy!

Need some of our pure maple sugar, maple syrup, or maple cream?  Find them here!

The Sweet Taste of Spring

Our mild winter allowed for early production of the best thing on earth - pure maple syrup! This year we  (and many other maple producers) tapped and boiled earlier than we ever have.  Our season started with our first anticlimactic boil on February fourth.  It was nice to have the pans sweetened before boiling 12 hours the following day, but that first boil always feels long and slow, lucky if we are even close to drawing off any syrup.  By the end of the evening the syrup pans were finally starting to get some color and that wonderful sweet smell started to fill the sugar house.

This is always a special time of year for me.  My husband and I had our first date in the sugar house and I often tease him about which I fell in love with first - sugaring or him.  There's something about the boiling though, actually making the syrup, that I really love.  There is no greater sight this time of year than steam billowing from the cupola.  The sweet maple aroma that lingers in the sugar house is so enticing.  There is nothing that compares to the taste of hot maple syrup right out of the spigot. It is just really exciting making something so natural and pure that also tastes so decadent.
With our added taps this year, along with the added dry line on our vacuum line, there are times we are inundated with sap; making it hard to keep up.  That means plenty of long days and nights in the sugar house.  Late nights often include jumping jacks, singing (horribly) along to the radio, eating vanilla ice cream or plain donuts with warm maple syrup, and downing tons of caffeine - all to stay awake until we are out of sap and can shut down the evaporator.
We welcome visitors anytime that we are boiling!  Be sure to visit us for our open sugar house weekends, Saturdays and Sundays 10am-3pm, March 12th and 13th, March 19th and 20th, March 26th and 27th, and April 2nd and 3rd.  Come watch us boil, learn the process of making maple syrup, sample our yummy maple syrup and other maple products, and enter our free raffle to win maple products!  We hope to see you!