Elmira Maple Syrup Festival

C O M E

T A S T E

4 9

Y E A R S

SATURDAY, APRIL 6, 2013 | 7AM

O F

T R A D I T I O N

FESTIVAL GUIDE www.ELMIRAMAPLESYRUP.com

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 1

Serving you for over 100 Years

Enjoy the Festival!

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WELCOME TO ELMIRA This bird’s-eye view of downtown Elmira during the 2011 Elmira Maple Syrup Festival was taken from an ultralight by Perry Weber.

Welcome from the EMSF Committee............................... 3-7 Collect the 2013 Toy Bank......................................................... 8 Take in a documentary about Mennonites........................ 11 Take Flight with Birds of Prey Show..................................... 12 Mother Nature and Maple Syrup............................................ 15

FESTIVAL MAP.......................................................... 20-21 Maple Syrup Inspired Cuisine ........................................ 25-31 A Full Day of Activities........................................................... 32 Did You Know?........................................................................... 34 Wet Weather a Boon to Maple Production..................... 38

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PROUD TO SUPPORT THE

come o

O i v t S i m s a 7 t o T a

Member of Parliament, Kitchener-Conestoga

A

www.HaroldAlbrechtMP.ca 153 Country Hill Drive, Unit 2A, Kitchener ON N2E 2G7 | 519.578.3777

o

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 3 WELCOME / FROM THE CHAIRPERSON

come taste the tradition on saturday april 6 On behalf of the organizing committee and the 2,000+ volunteers, we welcome you to the 49th annual Elmira Maple Syrup Festival! Our attraction is the world’s largest one-day maple syrup festival. Every year since 1965, Elmira has hosted this annual event that attracts nearly 70,000 people ready to taste the local maple syrup poured onto thousands of pancakes.

The entire community comes alive and volunteers, young and

old, contribute in any way they can. The proceeds raised by the Festival are donated back to non-profit organizations in the community.

Come join us and taste, smell and experience the Elmira Maple Syrup Festival. The entire family will enjoy the tradition that makes the town of Elmira a vibrant and fun place to visit.

Enjoy the day!

Ken Jessop

ARTIST / ON THE COVER

the renowned waterloo Artist Peter Etril Snyder’s paintings have graced the marketing brochures and guides for more than a decade.

The paintings he allows the festival to use feature Mennonite sugar bush operations collecting sap the way of yesteryear. online / www.snyder-gallery.com

4 | THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL

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THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 5

2013 elmira maple syrup festival committee

The Elmira Maple Syrup Festival Committee members have been waiting a long time for spring, when all of their toils pay off. Though the festival lasts only a day, organizers have been hard at work since September. Dedicated volunteers put in hundreds of hours of work every season, not including the long setup on the evening before the festival that usually lasts all night. Every year the committee works to keep maple syrup traditions alive and as the years go by, it becomes ever more important to get younger generations involved in the pro-

cess, said this year’s chair, Ken Jessop. Front row: Rudy O’Hara, LeighAnne Quinn, Sabina Voisin, Alyssa Foerster, Cheryl Peterson, Laurie Thompson, Brenda Taylor. Middle row: Scott Billings, Tom O’Hara, Ken Jessop, Andrew Peppin, Vince Sowa. Back row: Rod Hoddle, Drew McGovern, Don Little, Dan Haines. Missing: Sue Brenner, Peter Trautrim, Carl Mueller, Jo Barr, Shauna Schultz, Don Borghese, Ken and Kelly MacFarlane, Amy Olsen, Doug McLean, Sherry Kipfer, Sean Baker.

6 | THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL

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A NEW FACE OF THE FESTIVAL This new mascot for the Elmira Maple Syrup Festival has yet to be named. A contest to name the pancake mascot is running in area public schools — the name will be revealed on festival day and the student who named it will be awarded $100 at 2 p.m. at the bandstand.

8 | THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL collectible / souvenir

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This year’s toy collectible is the Ford Model A, available for $38 at the Toy Show.

ford model a truck this year’s collectible toy For the 26th year running, syrup lovers with a soft spot for toys will be in luck come April 6.

Since 1987, the Elmira Maple Syrup Festival has offered an annual high-quality toy collectible to add to their mantle – and this year will be no different.

This year, the festival’s limited edition offering is a miniature replica of a 1929 Ford Model A Quarter Ton Truck. The truck comes equipped with chrome bumpers

and wheel covers, and has been given a two-tone green and white paint sheen. Connoisseurs of the Festival’s history will appreciate that it comes branded with an Elmira Maple Syrup Festival 49th anniversary logo.

“It’s a nice little truck,” said Doug McLean, chairperson of the festival’s toy show. “To the best of my knowledge, it’s not a very common version of the Ford Model A. That’s one of the reasons we

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 9

picked it.”

For McLean, creating the collectible becomes more challenging every year.

“The economic downturn caused toymakers to not put big money into new molds,” he said.

“That’s the difficult part, because since we’ve been doing this for quite a long time now, we’ve used up lots of different items.”

But despite the difficulties, collectors can rest assured that the miniature Model A will be of dependable quality. “It actually follows it very close,” said McLean. “They discovered if they

wanted to sell ‘em that they had to be detailed!”

The syrup festival’s toy show will play host to a wide range of toy vendors on Friday night from 7 to 9:30 p.m., and on Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Games, dolls, comic books, and puzzles will be some of the items on sale.

The model truck is on sale for $40 (taxes included), and is available for purchase at the headquarters booth during the festival, or by calling Woolwich visitor services at 519-669-6000. It can be purchased after the festival via www.elmiramaplesyrup.com.

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The collection has grown over the years adding a new car every year. The limit of casts is making this tradition harder to continue.

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Festival Day Excursion Train Three direct round trips to Elmira

Market train to St. Jacobs Three Market Day, hop-on, hop-off round trips between Waterloo, the St. Jacobs Farmers Market and the Village of St. Jacobs on historic railway equipment.

Regular schedule runs April through October.

2013 Schedule

Festival Day Schedule Depart Waterloo

8:00

10:30 1:20

Arrive Elmira

8:50

11:20 2:10

Depart Elmira

12:00

2:30 4:40

Arrive Waterloo

12:50

3:20 5:30

to

make the ride part of the adventure

on

Fares

April 5

April 6

Adults

$22

$25

Children

$13

$15

First run

Last run

Saturdays

April 13

October 26

Thursdays

May 16

October 10

Family

$75

$75

Tuesdays

June 11

August 27

One-way

$15

$15

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Ride the rails to and from the festival this year. Relax in vintage style as you pass through the Woolwich countryside and arrive in Elmira to enjoy the festivities without the hassle of parking.

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 11

Movies tell the story of the area’s Mennonites Syrup will turn into popcorn on Saturday morning as Elmira’s Farmers Plus will join with St. Jacobs’ The Mennonite Story to present a double-bill of short documentaries about Woolwich’s Mennonite community. Screening parallel to the Elmira Maple Syrup Festival, Mennonites of Ontario and Who Are the Mennonites? will offer visitors a chance to learn more about some of the area’s most visible but also most private residents.

Mennonites of Ontario depicts the lives of Old Order Mennonites in the Waterloo Region, from life on the farm to Conrad Grebel University, the Mennonite school associated with the University of Waterloo.

“It’s an overview of their history, what it’s like in this area, and the more modern Mennonites of today,” explained Alice Soeder of Farmers Plus.

The film is distinguished by aerial photography of the region, much of it captured by local artist Carl Hiebert, whose work includes the book about Southwest Ontario Mennonite children, Us Little People.

The second, Who Are the Mennonites?, is an American-produced documentary that offers a more general perspective of the history of Mennonite culture in North America. Distributed by the Waterloo-based MennoMedia, the film promises to provide “an introduction to the history, beliefs, and practices that define Mennonites in a down-toearth, easy-to-understand fashion.”

The documentaries will play back-to-back April 6 at the Farmers Plus boardroom, 21 Church St. W. Screening times are 11 a.m., noon, 1, 2, and 3 p.m.

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12 | THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL NEW THIS YEAR / BIRDS OF PREY

taking to the skies The Canadian Raptor Conservancy makes their first appearance at the Elmira Maple Syrup Festival. A barn owl and red-tailed hawk will be two of the many birds of prey on display in the show.

If there’s one bird out there that loves maple as much as humans it’s the red tailed hawk, but fortunately there’s no need to fend off the talons of this winged creature just to get to your pancakes.

No, these birds love the red maple trees themselves, whether it’s for building their nests or

an afternoon perch, says James Cowan, director of The Canadian Raptor Conservancy, which will be holding a birds of prey exhibit at the Elmira Maple Syrup Festival for the first time.

“We’re probably going to have five or six birds of prey in it. [We’ll] probably talk about conservation, habitat, and, of course, talk about

natural history as well as where birds of prey fit in historically,” says Cowan.

The raptors will be represented by an owl, hawk, falcon, vulture and possibly a bald eagle, making their EMSF debuts.

Cowan says many of the birds are local to Ontario and the region. The bald eagle, for in-

stance, is once again gracing the skies after coming back from the brink of extinction (they’ve been officially removed from the U.S. federal government’s endangered species list).

For those who think the Canadian goose has the monopoly on continued | 14

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 13

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James Cowan is the director of the Canadian Raptor Conservatory - he and his staff wil entertain and educate guests of this year’s festival. Three shows are planned for the day at 9:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. from | 12

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the title of Canada’s national bird, think again, because the mapleloving red tailed hawk, often seen above Ontario highways, is a strong candidate, Cowan says.

The organization even has an online petition that it plans to take to parliament.

Conservation and education are the Canadian Raptor Conservancy’s creed but that doesn’t mean staff don’t know how to have fun,

Cowan explains.

“We use some education with entertainment, mix them together so that people have a good time with birds and they don’t even know that they are learning but at the end of the show they actually learn something.”

The show runs on the day of the festival (April 6) at 9:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 2:30 p.m. on Snyder Avenue near South Street. Tickets cost $3 per adult and child; admission is free for infants.

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 15

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Fred Martin is the president of the Waterloo-Wellington Maple Syrup Producers Association.

INDUSTRY / let it flow

Weather more favourable for sap so far this year After poor yields last year due to unseasonably warm weather at the tail end of winter, local maple syrup producers are optimistic about this season.

The mild weather that arrived early in 2012 brought the buds out well ahead of schedule, reducing many producers’ useful run of sap.

“If you recall we had almost a week of 20-24 degree weather

which everybody thought was wonderful for being outdoors, but the trees really got fooled into thinking that spring had arrived and broke bud and as soon as we have that happening we just lose the quality of sap,” says WaterlooWellington Maple Syrup Association president Fred Martin. continued | 16

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mother nature rules when it comes to sap production from | 15

Ontario producers last year collected 40 to 80 per cent of an average crop, reported The Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Those numbers were reflected locally, where producers saw between 50 to 70 per cent of the usual maple syrup yield. An average crop, Martin says, is considered to be about 1 litre per tap hole.

Maple syrup producers had to cut the season short once temperatures elevated to the point of producing lower quality sap, know as buddy sap.

Quality sap, which runs clear from the tree, is collected when daytime temperatures begin to rise, sending sap from the maple tree’s root system up into the branches to prepare the tree for budding. At night as temperatures drop, the sap retreats back to the roots.

Martin explains, “When it’s cold the buds are dormant but the sap is storing up sugar in the tree branches.”

As soon as the weather is warm enough for the buds to grow, the

sap takes on an unfavourable “buddy” aftertaste and a cloudy hue signaling the end of the season.

Good syrup is much like a fine wine in that respect, Martin says.

An inexperienced palette may not detect the difference right away but the aftertaste gives away the level of quality.

Sticking closer than ever to their trees – maples went into their dormant stages extremely dry last season – producers are seeing the golden stuff spill right into their laps so far.

“The trees have totally fooled us so far this year. We’ve had three really nice runs. We’ve made 30 per cent of an average crop in the first couple of runs, which was a bit of a shock.”

As for the rest of the spring crop, results are yet to be seen but most producers are well accustomed to the unpredictable ebb and flow of the season.

“Mother Nature rules. We play by her rules and what she gives us, that’s what we work with,” he notes.

“The older I get, the more I realize that’s not going to ever change.”

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 17

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Maple syrup historian Albert Martin is never at a loss for words describing the craft’s evolution to tourists.

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Visiting a sugar shack, where the sap is boiled down to produce maple syrup, is an annual ritual for many people, visitors and locals alike, while the short season lasts.

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18 | THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL

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COOKING WITH CHEF D 11 - 11:15 & 1:30 - 1:45 Also featuring: Robin in the Hood, Face Painters, Costumed Characters.

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 19

bandstand gore park 8:15 - 8:30AM welcome & Introduction 2:00 - 2:30pm Volunteer Recognition Award

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20 | THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL

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ATTRACTIONS

Festival Information 1

Devour Our Pancakes

2

Browse & Eat!

3

P

Parking $5.00/car

Starts at 7a.m. Pancakes with maple syrup.

Craft booths, apple fritters, baked goods and home-style meals.

Old-Fashioned Toffee

A sweet treat and a place to catch your breath.

4

Quilt & Craft Show

519-698-9930 519-698-2213

9

Resting Place

Friday 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., Saturday 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Collectible & Antique Show

7

Pancake Flipping Contest

At the WMC. Fri. 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., Sat. 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

A lot of fun for all involved. Starts at 11 a.m. at the WMC.

CHURCH

Meet the birds of the Canadian Raptor Conservatory 9:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., and 2:30 p.m. At the WMC. Zion Mennonite Fellowship, 47 Arthur Street. 8 a.m. - 3 p.m.

10 Train From Waterloo

5 Departures to Elmira and return on festival day (not wheelchair accessible) Pony rides, farm animals and a straw maze.

6

WASHROOMS

Birds of Prey Show

Toy Show & Sale

EMSF MAP LEGEND

Call to Order

8

11 Old MacDonald's Farm

From 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.

5

Handicap Parking

12

Sugarbush Tour Venture to a local sugar bush by bus and tour a working sugarbush 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Log Sawing 13 Enjoy Practice your log sawing skills over by the mall and bring home a souvenir.

14 Kids Activities & Family Area

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THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 21

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22 | THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL

Thank You For Your Support

Thank You Sponsors: The Elmira Maple Syrup Festival would like to thank all of its sponsors for their generous support. Their continued sponsorship enables the festival to be successful year after year. We would also like to thank all of the volunteers who helped out, without whom none of this would have been possible.

THE Sugar maple is the king CRITICAL MASS

MAGS

SANYO CANADIAN MACHINE WORKS INCORPORATED

At the Crossroads | BMO Bank of Montreal | Central Tavern | Countryside RV | Elmira Farm Service | Frey Building Contractors | Mennonite Savings and Credit Union | M.R.C. Systems | Picard Foods | Premier Equipment (formerly John Deere) | Royal Bank of Canada | Waterloo Dairy Producers | Waters & Hastings Law Office | Zimmerman Custom Flooring

See you again next year!

For more information on upcoming events, call the Township of Woolwich

519-669-6000 • Fax 519-669-9348 • Toll Free 1-877-969-0094 or visit our website at www.elmiramaplesyrup.com

Living in this area, you don’t have to look far to spot a maple tree. Not all maples are created equal, however, when it comes to producing the syrup that is as Canadian as the flag that bears the maple leaf.

There are six species of sugar maple trees. They thrive on steep, rich soils and during long, bitter winters.

Each autumn, the tree provides a spectacular treat when its leaves turn color, painting the landscape with yellow, orange and scarlet.

The main maple producing tree is known as the sugar maple, or hard maple, which is the best provider of the highest quality sap. It grows as tall as 100 feet and is valued for its ornamental shade.

It is also used in the production of fine furniture.

A few of the other main types of maple trees are the red maple, the silver maple (or soft maple) and the ash leafed maple (or box elder) The sugar maple is the main producing tree. The sap from the

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 23

GOOD FOOD, FRIENDLY SERVICE

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1860

of the syrupy SWEET trees sugar maple contains about two per cent sugar, while saps from others contain half to two thirds as much.

As well, the syrup made from other saps are darker and less flavourful.

While these species of trees can be found in several areas of the world, they mainly find their proper climatic environment for maple sugaring in parts of southern Ontario, Quebec, the Maritimes in Canada as well as the New England States in the U.S. and ten other states as far west as

Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Sugar maples can reach a tappable size, under the best conditions, in 30 to 40 years. Carefully tapped, a tree will give, drop by drop, about 12 litres of sap on a warm spring day, and could continue to give sap for a century.

During the maple sugaring season, which lasts about six weeks, an average maple tree will yield between 35 and 50 litres of sap, which will produce between 1 and 1.5 litres of pure maple syrup.

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Call it boutique maple syrup.

Ontario produces just four per cent of this county’s supply of the sweet stuff, so it really is something of a specialized market.

Waterloo-Wellington is the highest-producing region in the province, however, followed by Lanark County in Eastern Ontario.

All told, there are some 2,600 maple producers working with 1.3 million taps in Ontario.

Quebec is the country’s dominant supplier of maple syrup, with some 91 per cent of domestic production, followed by New Brunswick at 4.5 per cent, Ontario (3.9 per cent) and Nova Scotia (0.5 per cent).

Canada and the United States are the only two maple syrupproducing countries in the world.

Canada accounts for 82 per cent of the production, and the U.S., primarily in the northeast, makes up the rest.

Like wine, the taste of maple syrup varies from area to area, depending on the trees, soil and local weather. There are also dif-

ferences in the grading system between provinces and states; Vermont, a major U.S. producer, even has its own standards. Most maple-producing states and provinces have their own laws regulating syrup sold in those states.

States without such regulations must follow national regulations.

Vermont and New Hampshire require a slightly higher minimum density of sugar than is required by the regulations in other areas, though many producers use the higher density guidelines. All U.S. regulations use the U.S. Department of Agriculture colour standards, but have different words to describe the colours. Here in Canada, we use still different colour standards, which leads to slightly darker syrups in each colour grade.

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 25

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MAPLE SYRUP INSPIRED RECIPES BY LOCAL CHEFS

TAKING THAT SWEET GOODNESS BEYOND FLAPJACKS A tasty delight poured over piping hot pancakes or enjoyed drizzled on some fresh snow, maple syrup makes a delicious ingredient in a whole range of recipes. You might not find any of

these offered up on festival day – though there are maple-flavoured treats of all kinds up for grabs – but there’s nothing stopping you from putting that newly-purchased bottle of fresh, local syrup

to use. Save some to smother your own batch of pancakes or waffles, but feel free to indulge yourself in the ideas presented here. continued next page

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26 | THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL

Maple Glazed Cruller (makes 14) 1 cup water 1 tbsp sugar 3 oz salted butter Pinch of salt 1 cup flour 3 eggs

In a medium-sized pot, add water, sugar, salt and butter and bring to a boil. Drop heat to medium, sift in flour while stirring with a wooden spoon and continue to cook for 1 to 2 minutes then set aside; Cool for 4 minutes then place the ball of dough into a mixer and beat the 3 eggs one at a time until the dough is nice and smooth (3 minutes); Once mixed, place the paste into a piping bag with a star tip, pipe a circle onto a small piece of parchment paper and drop the whole piece of paper into the fryer that is set to 350F. Cook for 2 minutes and peel the paper off then flip the cruller and cook till golden brown; Place the cooked cruller onto some paper towel to drain excess oil. Once they have cooled then dip them into the maple glaze.

Enjoy.

Maple Glaze 1 cup icing sugar 3 tbsp maple syrup

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix with a spoon. You might need to add some extra maple syrup to achieve your desired consistency.

Bacon wrapped Scallops with Maple Gastrique 6 U10 scallops (U10 means under 10 pieces per pound) 6 par-cooked pieces of bacon (Par cooked means cooked halfway done) 2 tbsp bacon grease or oil 6 toothpicks 1/4 cup maple syrup 3 tsp rice wine vinegar Salt & pepper

Place the scallops onto a paper towel and pat both sides dry; Place the par-cooked bacon on a cutting board then lay the scallops on top, roll and skew with a tooth pick; Place a large pan on high heat, add bacon grease or oil.

Salt and pepper both sides of the bacon-wrapped scallop and sear them off in the pan. After getting both sides of the scallops browned

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 27

then place them on a new piece of paper towel to soak up any excess moisture; Take the same pan, place it on medium heat and add the maple syrup, reduce for 1 minute then add the rice wine vinegar while whisking it together, cook for 2 minutes; Place the bacon wrapped scallops on a plate and drizzle with the sauce.

Maple Cider Punch 1/4 cup maple syrup 1litre apple cider 3/4 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice 6oz spiced rum 1oz amaretto 2 cinnamon sticks Salt & pepper

In a medium-sized pitcher, place all ingredients and mix with a wooden spoon; taste, and adjust liquor if needed. Serve over ice with desired amount of San Pellegrino.

Recipies by Chef Ryan Terry of Flow Cafe & Catering

28 | THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL

the hidden benefits of cooking with maple syrup

Enjoy Your Stay in Elmira!

Come Back Soon!

Doug & Mary Lou Pagett OPEN 24 HOURS | 7 DAYS A WEEK

315 Arthur St. S., Elmira 519-669-5403

“Celebrating with Maple Syrup Fresh Baking, Soups & More!”

• Local Ingredients • Casseroles • Soups • Baking • Sandwiches • Custom Cakes • Catering

Visit our food shoppe or order online at www.neverenoughthyme.ca 83A Arthur St. S., Elmira | 519-669-0374 | neverenoughthyme@bellnet.ca Serving Elmira, Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge, Guelph & Surrounding Areas.

Driving down the Elmira Road from Guelph I see a familiar sight: little blue pails lined up on the sugar maple trees a sure sign that spring is not far away.

Fresh from holidays, I immediately think of all things maple!

Fudge, maple Dijon BBQ sauce, maple sugar rubs, maple-glazed shortbread and, of course, our maple roasted butternut squash soup. Now our shop is on main street and we are looking forward to being a part of the EMSF celebration, the flavour and personality that is Elmira.

Maple is no stranger to our kitchen: we serve it with our crepes, pancakes for catering and drizzle it over sausage for the mayors’ breakfast.

As a natural sweetener maple syrup can be used for so much more.

These recipes reflect the diversity of nature’s kindness. The sweetness can be used in vinaigrettes, sweet-and-sour sauces and provide more depth of flavour without overpowering a dish. Hidden benefits include natural phenols, beneficial antioxidants, potassium, zinc, calcium and hints of vitamin B. You can’t find that in Aunt Jemima!

So come to Elmira, shake off the sluggishness of winter and take in the celebration. We will be there to enjoy the many pancakes being flipped, our maple coffee, freshbaked treats and the many visitors the season brings. Try these recipes at home to keep the season going.

Pan Seared Halibut with maple Ginger Tamarind Sauce Halibut 3 tbsp clarified butter Salt and pepper Leeks quartered from end to stem lengthwise

Portion the halibut into individual portions and dry with paper

towel; Place clarified butter into pan; once very hot, place the halibut flesh side down. Sear and place on parchment lined baking sheet; Blanch leeks that have been

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 29

washed in boiling water for 4 minutes and shock in cold water to stop the cooking process. Drain well and season, wrap around the fish like a belt.

Maple Ginger Tamarind Sauce 1/2 cup tamarind paste 1 1/2 tsp tamari or soya sauce 1 tbsp fish sauce 2 tbsp maple syrup 2 tbsp local honey 1/2 thumb of ginger, chopped finely 1 clove of chopped garlic

Combine tamarind with hot water, strain and mash through strainer, discard the solids in the strainer; Add soya sauce, fish sauce, maple syrup, honey, garlic and ginger; Drizzle the sauce on the halibut and bake in oven at 375 F for approximately 12-15 minutes.

30 | THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL

Saffron Cardamom Rice

GOOD AUTO PARTS

3 tsp butter 1/2 cup diced red onion 3 cup basmati rice 4 cup water 4 tbsp dried cranberries 2 tsp maple syrup 1-1/2 tsp salt 1 tsp crumbled saffron threads 3 cardamom pod 1 cinnamon stick 1/4 cup toasted pepitas

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Melt 3 teaspoons of butter in medium saucepan over medium heat; Add onion and sauté until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Add rice and stir for 2 minutes; Add water, cranberries, syrup, salt, saffron, cinnamon and cardamom. Bring to boil’ Reduce heat, cover and simmer until rice is tender, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat; let stand covered for 10 minutes. Stir in pepitas.

00

10

24 gingersnap cookies 1/3 cup butter, melted 1/3 cup sugar ¼ cup toasted pecans 32 oz of cream cheese softened 1 cup maple syrup

4 eggs 1 tbsp vanilla 1/2 cup 35% cream

In food processor pulse the ginger snaps to a crumb, stir in melted butter and sugar, pulse until combined, add pecans and pulse once more; Press evenly into a spring-form pan. Bake in oven for approximately 10 minutes, pull from oven and cool; Using mixer with paddle attachment, beat softened cream cheese and scrape bowl occasionally to cream the cheese together. Once all the cheese is whipped, add the syrup and eggs, one at a time. Beat the mix until the egg is incorporated and add another egg; Add vanilla and cream and mix until it is just combined. Pour the filling into the gingersnap-lined pan and bake in the middle of the oven at 325 F for 1 hour. The cake will set as it chills; Once chilled slice with hot knife and drizzle with maple syrup and whipped cream.

Recipies by Chef Dierre Acheson of Never Enough Thyme Catering Inc.

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 31 about / chef’s table

Chef’s Table is a weekly recipe column published in The Observer, Woolwich and Wellesley’s weekly newspaper. Both chefs are contributing authors and operate catering businesses in downtown Elmira. We encourage you to visit them and sample their offerings.

You can also look up their recipies online at: www.ObserverXtra.com.

about the authors Chef Ryan Terry owns FLOW Cafe & Catering in Elmira. Located in the lower level at 10 Church St. W., Elmira. More info can be found at www.flowcatering.ca.

about the authors Never Enough Thyme Catering Inc. was created with one thought in mind ... to create more thyme! Enjoy our food shop, specialty cakes and catering. 83 A Arthur St. S., Elmira. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

32 | THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL

Build a little muscle while making your rounds at the festival. Log-sawing is fun to do with a friend You come to the festival for the food — and that is supplied in abundance and variety. Corn on the and harder than it looks. Watch or take part in this local Scouts initiative that serves as a fundraiser cob is a favourite anytime of the year, but extra special on a cold, crisp day. for the local troop.

A full day of activities are on tap for you

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Once you’ve found your parking spot and made your way downtown, what exactly is there to do and see at this year’s maple syrup festival?

The most important thing, of course, and the whole raison d’etre of the festival, is to enjoy some of that sweet, sticky liquid, which will be dispensed throughout the pedestrian mall running the length of Arthur Street from Church Street to the cenotaph. The main area to enjoy it will be at the pancake booth, available on Wyatt

Street as of 7 a.m.

Volunteers will ladle out 880 kilograms of pancake mix – using a secret festival recipe – onto their griddles, and then invite you to smother them with 725 litres of Waterloo Region’s finest maple syrup.

If you think you can do a better job flipping the flapjacks, the pancake flipping contest might be for you. It will get underway at Lions Hall at 11 a.m. and will carry on until a winner has been decided. Unusual substitutes for your

garden-variety spatula get extra points in this relay event.

While you’re at Lions Hall, no time is too early to start shopping for toys – the toy show and sale runs throughout the day and this year features a new collectible: a 1947 International pickup truck toy bank.

If you want to see real animals in the flesh, move on over to the horse barn off of Walker Street near the corner of Church and Arthur streets, where Old MacDonald’s Farm features your typical

I E w t t

e

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 33

Visit Kitchener's Oldest Mennonite Homestead National Historic Site

Costumed interpreters bring history to life!

ial Spec bit i h Heartwood:The Arts of Sarah Ex Granskou & Trevor Ewert FAIRs 2013 your Markendars Cal

Heart & Hand

Festival of Traditional Arts Sept. 21, 2013

Wed. to Sat. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sun. 1 to 5 p.m.

If large crowds are your thing, you’ve come to the right place.

Early morning at 7 a.m. is your best bet to avoid lineups and wander the area carefree. Check out The Resting Place downtown if you need a place to rest your feet. Check the map for the location.

animals as well as a hay maze for those willing to take a roll.

With so much going on and so much to see, you may need a little break – the Zion Mennonite Fellowship right on Arthur Street offers up The Resting Place, where you can take a load off for a while.

If seeing Old Order Mennonites in person is more your style, hourly tours of rural Woolwich Township will be offered throughout the day, as will tours of sugar bushes – home to the sweet liquid that brought you here in the first place.

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34 | THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL facts on sap / sweet information

Did you In an average year, each taphole will produce about 10 gallons of maple sap, which is enough for about one quart of pure maple syrup.

It takes about 40 gallons of maple sap to make one gallon of maple syrup.

COME AND SAVOUR THE MAPLE

FLAVOUR

DON’T LET YOUR SWEET TOOTH MISS OUT ON THIS. COME TASTE 49 YEARS OF TRADITION AT THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL. Get more action! After the festival go to www.observerxtra.com and find yourself in our online photo album. Or in our April 13th newspaper edition.

A PROUD SPONSOR OF THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL www.OBSERVERXTRA.com

The Elmira Maple Syrup Festival is in the Guinness Book of Records as the World’s Largest One Day Maple Syrup Festival.

A maple tree needs to be about 40 years old before it will be large enough to tap for syrup production.

The pancake-flipping event is a popular tradition that is fun to participate in and watch.

The boiling point of maple syrup is 219 degrees Fahrenheit, or seven degrees above the boiling point of water.

While there are seven species of maple trees in Ontario, only two species — sugar maple and black maple — are important in maple syrup production.

While the sugaring season may last six to 10 weeks, most of the sap will be collected in 10 or fewer days.

Maple syrup is boiled even further to produce maple cream, sugar, and candy.

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 35

know? using buckets. However, in most modern maple operations, buckets have been replaced with a system of plastic tubing.

Sap flowing in high volumes is called a “run.”

That the Pancake Tent at the Festival will go through 180 gallons of maple syrup. Maple syrup that is subsidized by local syrup producers.

The removal of sap doesn’t harm the tree as long as the number of taps is limited and the tree is healthy.

When European settlers came to Canada about 300 years ago, they found the Aboriginal people were making a crude, dark sugar from the sap of maple trees.

Historically, sap was collected

The freezing action during the winter months and spring nights allows maple trees to produce a large quantity of carbon dioxide gas. It is this gas that forces the sap to flow upward inside the tree during the warming cycle of the day. The sap moves along a pressure gradient from a zone of relatively high pressure to a zone of lower pressure.

10 per cent of proceeds from vendors is given back to the festival, which in turns gives out money as grants to non-profit organizations.

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36 | THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL

Get ready to stand in line for fresh maple taffy made the old fashioned way.

Old MacDonald’s Farm lets kids get up close with farm animals.

Watch the action and fierce competition of the pancake-flipping contest.

Learn to tap a tree by doing one on the sugar bush tour.

Pony rides for the kids are always good fun.

THE ELMIRA MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL | 37 nature’s bounty / benefits of maple sugar

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Maple syrup makes a tasty alternative to sugar Maple syrup, either in its liquid form or crystallized, makes a tasty substitute for sugar.

While the health benefits of swapping sweeteners is debatable, maple products do contain trace minerals and nutrients not found in processed sugar.

The sugar in maple syrup is sucrose with small amounts of glucose and fructose sugar. White sugar is sucrose. Because it is a less refined sugar, maple products contain minerals, antioxidants, and other compounds that have been shown to have health advantages in other foods.

Maple syrup can be substituted for white sugar in cooking. Use one cup maple syrup for one cup white sugar. Reduce liquid in recipe by three tablespoons for each cup of syrup used. Maple sugar can replace white sugar in equal amounts.

When replacing granulated sugar in a recipe with maple syrup you

should consider both the sugar balance and the liquid balance of the recipe. Some recommendations say to add 1-1/4 cup of syrup to replace one cup of sugar, others say to replace one cup of sugar with 3/4 cup of maple syrup. One is trying to balance the liquid in the recipe, the other the sweetness.

The most straightforward approach is to simply replace one cup of granulated cane sugar with one cup of granulated maple sugar.

Used as a sweetener, maple syrup brings an added dimension of taste – how much can be adjusted depending on the darkness of the syrup – that goes beyond just the sugars. Boiling point temperature elevation is the most common method used to determine when ideal sugar density is reached. Maple syrup will reach an optimum sugar density at boiling point temperature of 4.1 °C (7.3 °F) above the boiling point of pure water.

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wet weather goes a long way in helping syrup production The Elmira Maple Syrup Festival is a crowd favourite in part as a harbinger of spring, offering a chance to get out as winter ebbs.

In recent years, winters have been less robust than in the past, though February’s snowfalls did amount to more than we’ve become accustomed to seeing. Even if you’re no fan of all the snow, there’s no denying that it’s helpful in maintaining the health of the trees that provide the sweet goodness that brings everyone out to Elmira on festival day.

The snow cover helps protect the earth, and melting snow recharges groundwater levels. That in turn helps buffer against the increasingly dry summer weather we’ve been seeing. More rain in the spring and summer would be equally beneficial ... even if we’d rather see nothing but sunshine and mild temperatures on April 6.

According the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food, the combination of hot and dry weather, lack of overhead canopy and light and/or shallow soil conditions can cause very signifi-

The tools and tricks of the modern tapping of the tree. Tourists are given a demonstration of tapping a tree on the tour of a sugar shack during the festival.

cant stress to maple trees. When exposed to these conditions, the trees respond by closing their leaf stomata and shutting down the process of photosynthesis. This can translate into lower starch reserves in the trees during the fall and winter months. Pre-mature

leaf fall can also affect the nutritional status of the tree.

The visible effects of the hot, dry weather are often most noticeable in maple orchards, along roadways and fence lines, and in sugar bushes with an open canopy allowing penetration of solar ra-

diation into the undergrowth.

In recent years, there have been reports of young trees as high as 15 metres tall showing signs of moderate to severe stress. Trees planted within the past several years are most at risk because their root systems are not fully established. These trees would definitely benefit from periodic watering until dry weather subsides.

Without watering, it is expected that many recently planted or naturally seeded maple trees may suffer mortality. It is also expected that some of the well established maples growing on lighter soils or on soils with rooting depth restrictions, will suffer mortality.

These trees will have less chance to recover from the effects of a mid- to late-season drought than they would from abnormally dry weather experienced earlier in the season.

The snowy days just past and the rainy days ahead serve a real purpose when it comes to producing maple syrup, along with a host of other agricultural benefits – something we can keep in mind the next time the clouds open up.

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bandstand gets a facelift The bandstand in Gore Park, an Elmira landmark, is sporting a makeover for this year’s outing of the maple syrup festival. The structure that was in poor shape and showing years of wear was given an overhaul in 2012.

The bandstand has been a fixture in the downtown core for 120 years. The original bandstand is thought to have been located behind a hotel on the northwest corner of Church and Arthur streets and erected in 1892. The hotel, the Anglo-American House, was destroyed in a fire in 1898, but the bandstand survived and was

transported to Gore Park when the block was rebuilt.

By 1912, the bandstand was starting to look tired and Elmira’s council decided to erect a new one from a design prepared by members of the Elmira Musical Society. Abraham Martin Bowman submitted a bid of $33, half of what his competitors were asking, and council accepted it.

The original bandstand did not have a roof which was added by Bowman. The revised structure was kept intact, though Woolwich council budgeted a much heftier $80,000 this time around.

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