Homemade Maple Butter

I love maple syrup season. It brings back so many good memories of my French-Canadian Grandfather and all the wonderful treats he would make. I'm lucky enough to have his recipes passed down to me, and although I've refined one or two over the years nothing beats his homemade maple butter on fresh bread. I hope you enjoy it.

Note: Well this is called maple butter there is actually zero dairy in it. So to all my dairy free friends, feel free to enjoy!



Homemade Maple Butter

Equipment
Candy thermometer
Large bowl
Clean medium saucepan/bowl (fit in the large bowl)
Large metal pot
Wooden spoon

Ingredients
2 Cups amber/light maple syrup, you want to use good quality syrup as the flavour will be slightly concentrated
¼ tsp vegetable oil

Directions
1. Fill the large bowl with an inch of ice cubes and ice cold water. Place the medium sized bowl into the ice bath. It’s best to use either glass or metal for this. NO PLASTIC!
2. Pour the maple syrup into the large pot, and take the vegetable oil and rub it around the pot just above where the syrup reaches. This will prevent the maple syrup from boiling over.
3. Stick the candy thermometer into the pot of maple syrup and place over a medium heat.
4. Cook WITHOUT STIRRING until the maple syrup reaches 232F. It usually takes about 15 minutes for it to get that high on my stove. Do not walk away from this! It is boiling sugar and can cause serious damage if unsupervised.
5. Once the syrup has reached 232F remove from heat and pour immediately into the bowl you have placed in the ice bath. Do not move it or disturb it until it has cooled or your butter will not set right.
6. Keep adding ice to the larger bowl, until the syrup reaches about 140F on the candy thermometer.
7. Once it reaches the right temperature, use a wooden spoon to slowly stir it until it thickens and reaches the right texture. It will become very light and be almost like organic peanut butter in consistency. It usually takes me about 13 minutes.
8. Working very quickly after that, move the maple butter into whatever container you are going to keep it in. It’s good for up to 6months in the refrigerator.