| Featured Recipe |
| Here is a recipe that I came across last month. I could not believe how good they are! It's my new favorite granola bar. |
Maple Quinoa Granola Bars
- 3 cups quick-cooking rolled oats
- 1 cup quinoa, rinsed
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/3 cup coconut oil
- 2/3 cup pure Vermont maple syrup
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2) Large baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
3) Line a 13x9 inch baking pan with parchment paper.
4) Spread oats and quinoa on the prepared baking sheet. Bake in oven for 10-12 minutes, stirring once or twice, until golden brown. Remove from oven, leaving oven on, and let cool on sheet for 5 minutes.
5) In a large bowl, whisk together cinnamon, salt, oil, maple syrup and vanilla. Stir in cooled oats mixture. Spread mixture in prepared pan.
6) Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes. Using parchment liner, lift mixture from pan and invert onto a cutting board. While still warm, peel off parchment and cut into desired size bars. Let cool completely and enjoy!
-"500 Best Quinoa Recipes"
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| Maple Fact |
Maple syrup contains 34 beneficial compounds and 20 of these posses anti-oxident and anti-inflammatory properties.
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Dear Isabela,
First of all I would like to take a moment to thank all of you who have supported us over the years and especially for 2013. Last year was our most successful yet and our maple goodies reached more people world-wide then ever. We shipped to Germany, Italy, France, Sweden, Norway, Finland, The Netherlands, Turkey, Ireland, Scotland, Great Britain, Hungary, Russia, Laos, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, The Philippines and Israel to name a few of the international destinations. We also shipped products to all 50 US states, many US Protectorates and to US military installations the world over!
So, I would like to repeat, a big heart felt THANK YOU, from our family to you for supporting our maple farm.
We have two major production centers at Mansfield Maple. We have a sugar-house in Underhill, VT where we produce maple
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| Meet Sarah! |
syrup during the spring maple sugaring season and we have a shop in Winooski, VT where we turn that maple syrup into all the maple goodies you have grown to love so much. To make all of this happen we employ a full time and part time staff of maple enthusiasts, and we thought you would like to know "who's who." If you have visited our website over the last month you may have noticed a change on our "About" page. We have updated this page to include photos and bios of all of us here at Mansfield Maple to give you a sense of who we are and to help put a face to the name of the person answering the phone.
http://vermontpuremaple.com/about_maple_syrup.php
We have spent the last month in the sugar-woods preparing for the new season. Every year storms bring down trees and damage is caused to our sap pipeline system. It takes several weeks to clear the debris and make the necessary repairs to ready the infrastructure for sap collection. Also, in a past newsletter we discussed that we were installing a new sap
st  orage tank. To do this we had to move an existing tank house, squeeze the new tank in between two others and build an addition to accommodate this new sap storage. If you are interested in this upgrade to our sugaring operation, I've included some details on this project in an article below. 
maple syrup grading system here in Vermont. This new system is a way to create some continuity in grading criteria across the industry that encompasses the other US producing states and Canada. Our maple syrup is not going to change any, but the new grading labels will convey more clarity as to what each grade is and what to expect inside that bottle of "AMAZING." We will be implementing this new system over the next few months and you can find all the details below.
Enjoy!
-Chris White (Owner)
Mount Mansfield Maple Products
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~Sap Storage at Mansfield Maple~
 There is nothing worse then arriving at the sugar-house early in the morning or returning from working in the woods to find that the sap storage tanks have reached capacity and the sweet stuff pouring over the edge and into the ground. This does  not happen very often, but unfortunately it does happen from time to time. Three years ago we harvested sap from around 4,000 maple trees. Since then we have added over 1,000 new trees and these additional trees combined with increased productivity and efficiency has left us short on sap storage.
Previously, we had 3 sap storage tanks that combined could hold 8,000 gallons of sap. On a big collection day we can collect between 10,000 and 14,000 gallons of sap with 5,000 trees. Time for another tank!
 First we had to decide where to install this new tank. Currently our three tanks are comprised of two insulated and enclosed 2,000 gallon tanks and one open 4,000 gallon tank that sits inside a lean-to tank house. This lean to is right next to one of our enclosed tanks. Unfortunately, the best place to put the new tank was right in between the two.
We were unable to move the enclosed tank as it sits on the edge of a steep bank, thus there was no room to move it over any. So we  extended the foundation past the lean-to and decided to slide the entire 20' x 10' tank house away from the enclosed tank. Using a back-hoe, several strong backs and long fulcrums we slid the tank house inch by inch and foot by foot to it's new resting place.
Just this last weekend we built an addition on the existing lean-to to accommodate the new tank within the enclosure. Bob, Dave and Chris framed the new outer wall, installed rafters and stringers and screwed the last piece of tin down yesterday just after dark and in time to watch the big game.
Now all we need to do is install the paneling on the walls and plumb the pipes in and we will be all ready for the fast approaching season. This additional tank will lift our sap storage capacity from 8,000 gallons to 10,700. This will be a big help to us and relieve some processing pressures. Our goal this season is to not let one single drop of maple sap spill over the top of our collection tanks!
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~The New Vermont Maple Syrup Grading System~
The state of Vermont just approved the adoption of theInternational Maple Syrup Institute's grading system to replace the current state of Vermont maple grading system. This new grading criteria will not change the quality or flavor of maple syrup but will hopefully provide more clarity to consumers on what the differences are between maple syrup grades.
For many years here in Vermont we have been classifying maple syrup into 5 grades: Grade Fancy, A-Medium Amber, A-Dark Amber, Grade B, and Commercial Grade. If you are familiar with these grades or if you are from the North-East, chances are you have no difficulty differentiating between the different grades. However, if you are not familiar with Vermont grading or you are familiar with the grade system of another state or even Canada's grade system, then this Vermont System might generate some questions for you.
These questions may range from "how does this compare to, say New York grades?" to "what is the difference in flavor between these grades?" We get phone calls and emails every day from folks all over the world wondering which grade of maple syrup they should buy. Hopefully this new grading system will help consumers to make that decision, and when they are comparing Vermont maple syrup to maple syrup that is produced in other states from Michigan to Maine or in Canada, it will be easier to do so. The goal here is for our industry as a whole to be on the same page when it comes to grading maple syrup.
While there is some validity to the argument that labeling syrup as "Vermont Grade Fancy" or "Vermont Grade B" helps to to set Vermont apart from the other maple producers, the fact of the matter is that what is good for the real-maple-syrup industry as a whole is good for all individual maple syrup producers. If more clarity helps us to market our products to consumers then this is a good thing. After all, our main competitors are not each other as pure maple syrup producers, but rather our competition is the FAKE maple syrup producers. Fortunately, even the tiniest taste of real maple syrup easily converts people from the fake stuff, but ultimately, the goal of the new grading system is to make real maple syrup easier to purchase.
The new maple syrup grading system labels maple syrup with some nice descriptors to quickly convey what consumers should expect when purchasing a specific grade of maple syrup. Below you will find the new grade designations along with the old designations in (parenthesis).
Remember, the quality and flavor of maple syrup has not changed at all... the only thing that has changed is what we call it.
 Golden Color/Delicate Flavor
(Vermont Fancy)
Usually made at the beginning of the new maple season. Pour over vanilla ice cream for a Vermont maple sundae, sometimes called the Sugarmakers' Favorite Dessert.
 Amber Color/Rich Flavor
(Vermont Medium Amber)
Usually made about mid-season and seems to be the most popular for all around use. A good choice for gifts.
 Dark Color/Robust Flavor
(Vermont Dark Amber)
As the maple season progresses, the syrup darkens in color and develops a more robust maple flavor. Good for all around use, its hearty flavor is a great choice for all kinds of recipes. Pour over baked apples or squash, use as a glaze for meats and vegetables.
 Very Dark Color/Very Strong Flavor
(Vermont Grade B)
Produced at the end of the season, it's perfect for cooking! Makes Vermont baked beans, breads, and cookies especially tasty.
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions about this new grading system!
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The space created will allow for two new tanks to be installed, each at 2,700 gallons in size. We have already taken delivery of one tank (and installed it with the those same strong backs and back-hoe) and will hold off on delivery of the second tank until the 2015 sugaring season.
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