Maple sugar
Ziiga'igaans (maple sugar cubes) being made in a ziiga'iganaatig (sugar press-mould)
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| Origin | |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Canada and the United States |
| Details | |
| Type | Confectionery |
| Main ingredient(s) | Sap of the sugar maple tree |
Maple sugar is a traditional sweetener in Canada, and the northeastern United States, prepared from the sap of the maple tree.
Sources
Three species of maple trees are predominantly used to produce maple sugar: the sugar maple (Acer saccharum), the black maple (A. nigrum), and the red maple (A. rubrum),[1] because of the high sugar content (roughly two to five percent) in the sap of these species.[2] The black maple is included as a subspecies or variety in a more broadly viewed concept of A. saccharum, the sugar maple, by some botanists.[3] Of these, the red maple has a shorter season because it buds earlier than sugar and black maples, which alters the flavour of the sap.[4]
A few other (but not all) species of maple (Acer) are also sometimes used as sources of sap for producing maple sugar, including the box elder or Manitoba maple (Acer negundo),[5] the silver maple (A. saccharinum),[6] and the bigleaf maple (A. macrophyllum).[7] Similar sugars may also be produced from birch or palm trees, among other sources.[8][9]
Preparation
Maple sugar is what remains after the sap of the sugar maple is boiled for longer than is needed to create maple syrup or maple taffy.[10] Once almost all the water has been boiled off, all that is left is a solid sugar.[11] By composition, this sugar is about 90% sucrose, the remainder consisting of variable amounts of glucose and fructose.[12] This is usually sold in pressed blocks or as a translucent candy.[13] It is difficult to create as the sugar easily burns and thus requires considerable skill.[14]
History
Maple sugar was the preferred form of maple by First Nations/Native American peoples as the sugar could easily be transported and lasted a long time. It is called ziinzibaakwad by the Anishinaabeg.[15][16] Blessing of the Bay, the second ocean-going merchant ship built in the English colonies, carried maple sugar from the Massachusetts Bay Colony to New Amsterdam as early as 1631.[17] French awareness of the process is indicated in at least one engraver's works, those of the mid-18th-century artist Jean-Francois Turpin, the engraver Bernard (including several for Diderot's 1755 Encyclopedie.) and others.[18]
Uses
It is today used to flavor some maple products and can be used as an alternative to cane sugar.[19]
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Sugar makak – 1925
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Demonstration of Native American technique of making maple sugar
See also
References
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- ↑ Elliot 2006, pp. 8–10.
- ↑ Ciesla 2002, pp. 37–38.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ http://www.umext.maine.edu/onlinepubs/pdfpubs/7036.pdf
- ↑ Maple Sugar | baking911.com
- ↑ MMSA: Maple Facts, Figures, & References
- ↑ canadianmaplesyrup.com - canadianmaplesyrup Resources and Information. This website is for sale!
- ↑ http://maple.dnr.cornell.edu/pubs/trees.htm
- ↑ Weshki-Ayaad, Lippert and Gambill. Ojibwe-English and English-Ojibwe online dictionary.
- ↑ http://www.morsefarm.com/pages/history.php
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ http://www.philographikon.com/sugarproduction.html
- ↑ Maple Syrup Storage, Cooking Tips, and Substitutions
