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Posts Tagged ‘healthy’

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). When I looked into it I was shocked to learn that out of everything maple syrup can be one of the best sweets to be given to children that is readily available. A benefit is that it has less calories then a person would think, and has far fewer amounts of sugar than honey does. Another good thing is that it contains a small amount of zinc and manganese which are two essential minerals for peoples bodies, building the immune system and antioxidant defenses.  

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 bring it on, of course!

Now I use pure organic canadian maple syrup to add to things like squash, on fries, or even on “maple and banana sandwiches” in place of peanut butter. My kids also love pure maple butter with toast or wedged between stacks of corn cakes or 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 canadian maple sugar, 1/2 cup of brown sugar, a little maple extract, a few teaspoons of unsalted butter, all together on medium until it comes to a slow boil then you can brush it on your hot cookies. Let cool before serving (tip: the cookies taste better the next day).

A word of advice: When you go to the grocery, make sure you read the label and get “pure maple syrup” rather than “maple-flavored syrup”. The former may be pricier but since it isn’t diluted by other ingredients, you get a richer, earthier flavor, which makes it worth the extra penny. Also, the lighter the color, the more subtle the flavor. If you want to use syrup to cook try to get darker amber syrup as opposed to lighter stuff.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!