I can't tell you how excited I am that Spring is almost here. The days of both going to and leaving work in darkness are over, mittens and scarves are banished to the back of the closet, and the appearance of tapped maple trees is just around the corner.
I have very fond memories of my grade one class tapping a maple tree in our schoolyard; one of us would be chosen to be in charge of collecting the sap, and at recess we would all congregate around the bucket to see if any more had been collected from the few hours we had been sitting in class. Once the required amount was collected, our teacher boiled the sap down to make us candy - I can still remember the smell, and can't think about it without smiling.
I often sneak maple into much of my cooking - using it as a substitution for vanilla in my cookies and pies, or to give a hint of sweetness to carrot or squash soups. Add a little balsamic vinegar, and you have an incredible salad dressing, or a quick glaze for salmon.
If and when I ever win the lottery, I picture myself buying and living on a farm with big old maple trees, making my own syrup, growing my own vegetables...I have yet to come to terms with whether I would have chickens and cows; hypocritical I know, but I'm a little squeamish thinking about where my meat comes from sometimes. I can't even kill spiders without feeling guilty. But the idea of being self sustaining, especially in this economy with the price of food rising by the day, is a great dream to have. For now, I'll have to be content with my small patio garden.
MAPLE LEAF BUTTER COOKIES
c/o Gourmet Magazine, February 1995
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup Grade B maple syrup (or Grade A maple syrup flavored with 3 drops maple extract, or to taste)
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups all-purpose flour
Preparation
In a standing electric mixer cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy and beat in maple syrup and egg yolk until mixture is combined well. Sift together salt and flour over mixture and fold in thoroughly. Chill dough, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, about 2 hours. Dough may be made 4 days ahead and chilled.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Divide dough in half. Keeping one half chilled, lightly flour other half and on a lightly floured surface gently pound with a rolling pin to soften. Roll out dough 1/8 inch thick and with a 3-inch floured maple-leaf cookie cutter cut out cookies, chilling scraps. Arrange cookies on buttered baking sheets and if desired, with back of a knife, mark cookies decoratively. Make more cookies in same manner with remaining dough and with all the scraps pressed together.
Bake cookies in batches in middle of oven until edges are golden, about 12 minutes, and transfer to racks to cool. Cookies keep in airtight containers 1 week.
In a standing electric mixer cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy and beat in maple syrup and egg yolk until mixture is combined well. Sift together salt and flour over mixture and fold in thoroughly. Chill dough, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, about 2 hours. Dough may be made 4 days ahead and chilled.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Divide dough in half. Keeping one half chilled, lightly flour other half and on a lightly floured surface gently pound with a rolling pin to soften. Roll out dough 1/8 inch thick and with a 3-inch floured maple-leaf cookie cutter cut out cookies, chilling scraps. Arrange cookies on buttered baking sheets and if desired, with back of a knife, mark cookies decoratively. Make more cookies in same manner with remaining dough and with all the scraps pressed together.
Bake cookies in batches in middle of oven until edges are golden, about 12 minutes, and transfer to racks to cool. Cookies keep in airtight containers 1 week.
