Dear Panpanpan, Jeannie, Jenny, et al interested:
Pan, the whole saying is "as slow as molasses in January." It's cold in Januaryin countries that import molasses and in the cold molasses becomes thick, and is
very slow to pour. When it's warm in the summertime molasses becomes runny again.
Maple syrup is made from the sap of maple trees. It is collected from mature trees in early spring when the sap begins to run as the trees awaken from their deep winter rest. Spigots shaped like little downward sloping troughs are driven
into the trees' trunks. Sap runs down each spigot into a pail. Pailsful of the
very weak tasting, watery sap are collected together and boiled down to condense the sap into a syrup of the desired strength. We have maple tree farmsin Ontario and Quebec.
In the past, when sap was communally collected in the snowy springtime woods by
community groups all the sap was boiled together in a huge, black iron kettle and boiled on a big outdoor fire. Some people collected sap, some fed the fires, some prepared containers for the syrup, some supervised the boiling process
. You can image what fun everyone had, especially children, in the beautiful maple forests. When the sap became thick enough, people would pour small amounts of condensed syrup into stringy designs on clean snow, where it quickly hardened,
and they enjoyed eating the brittle strands like candy. Possibly there were little pots set at the edges of the fire, containing syrup especially to be readied for pouring on snow, because it would need to be heated longer than the main kettle, which was boiled just long enough to make maple syrup.
Maple syrup is a much more delicate sweet than molasses. Liquid and runny, it is delicious on our flat simple cakes (pancakes,) that are full of bubbles and have brown heat mark designs on them that make them look like lace doilies. Thereis another rather similar batter that is cooked on a waffle-iron griddle which cooks three dimensional square shapes all over each waffle. The squares hold the
syrup very well. This kind of waffle is crisp, and pancakes are not.
Lots of people have pancakes or waffles as a special breakfast on a Sunday morning. Sometimes they like to accompany their pancakes with little fried pork sausages. Such sausages are good with apple-sauce.
Molasses is usually very dark in colour and much less runny than maple syrup. It has a strong flavour, quite different from maple syrup. Molasses is used to make rum, a strong tasting alcoholic drink. Jamaica Rum is well known. We Baha'is
don't use alcohol in our diets, but I know rum flavour, and that the darker the
molasses used to make it, the darker and stronger the rum. Sailors used to be doled out a measure of rum every day. I guess it kept them warmer in cold, dampness, made them feel jolly, and gave them many of the minerals they needed during
a long sea voyage without fruits and vegetables. Limes were discovered as a portable source of vitamin C to keep them from getting scurvy and losing their teeth, or even dying. In England molasses is known as treacle. You might like to read the poem by Lewis Carol about the three little sisters and the treacle well.
:-))
A small measure of rum is known as "a tot of rum." Rum flavoring is delicious in the right kinds of cakes and candies. Some people enjoy rum and Coca Cola, known as "Rum and Coke," but it's considered a rather common drink.
Maple syrup is often made into a sort of maple candy, like fudge, which is called "Maple Sugar." Maple sugar is mostly made in Canada and each of the maple sugar candies is usually shaped like a maple leaf, the sign of our country, as you
have seen from the red maple leaf on a white ground on our country's flag.
Yes, David seems a little homesick for our childhood. I may find Mom's recipe one of these days, and when I do I'll send it to you, David. I think it may be slightly different from the one you mentioned. It's fun to make molasses taffy,
and wrap the cut pieces in white waxed paper. It lasts for a long time if you keep it in a tightly closed container. And it's delicious!
We also used to make excellent taffy apples at home. They were made with white
sugar syrup cooked to the "crack stage," coloured with red food colouring and flavoured with cinnamon flavouring. The washed apples are skewered on sticks and
dipped into the liquid syrup, then placed well apart on an oiled cookie sheet so
that the still runny taffy won't run down and join them to each other.
When they have cooled and you pick one up it often has about a half inch of candy sticking out all around the top from what flowed down. The crisp cinnamon flavoured red candy is delicious with the right kind of apple, preferably a well-flavoured, sweet, yet somewhat sour apple. For instance a MacIntosh apple would be a good apple to use. Just as we love cinnamon in our apple pies it goes well
in taffy apples. Taffy apples...another beloved old treat remembered from Hallowe'ens of the past.
Warmly, Mary
