Maple Syrup and Kefir Pancakes

The snow is melting, the birds are chirping, and the sun is shining! Spring is in the air, and you know what that means! Maple Syrup! My roommate started tapping the sugar maple in our backyard this year so I decided to get in on the fun too. She tapped a sugar maple, but pretty much any maple will do. The best time for optimal sap flow is early spring when it gets below freezing at night, then warms up during the day.

I put out a huge jar and after only 3 days I had plenty of sap to work with. I've heard that the sap to syrup ratio can be anywhere from 40-1 to 60-1, but it varies depending on the sugar content of the particular tree. My gallon of sap produced a little under a cup of syrup. While boiling the sap down, I used a candy thermometer to monitor the temperature. Some sources say the syrup is done when it reaches 217 degrees or so, but I just taste-tested it until it was sweet enough for me and had a good consistency. 

 

It turned out amazing with a beautiful amber color, and was actually a bit sweeter than the stuff I bought from the store! Now, for a pancake recipe worthy of this magnificent liquid gold, I naturally turned to Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon. If you haven't picked up this book yet, I highly recommend it. It will change your life. The basic pancake recipe in it calls for the flour (I used a mix of buckwheat and spelt) to be soaked in kefir for 12-24 hours.

  

Then you add the basic eggs, baking soda, salt, and butter. I also added some organic frozen blueberries to mine. They come out wonderfully chewy and light, and with a hint of the sour kefir taste. I topped them with butter and my homemade maple syrup and barely managed to snap a few pics before gobbling them up while standing at the kitchen counter. My roommate who tapped the tree even ate a few, and she doesn't even care for pancakes. Success!

Blueberry Kefir Pancakes

1 cup spelt

1 cup buckwheat flour

2 cups kefir

2 eggs, lightly beaten

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon backing soda

2 tablespoons melted butter

2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

- Mix the spelt and buckwheat flour with the kefir and let soak in a warm place for 12-24 hours.

- Mix in remaining ingredients and thin with water if desired.

- Add blueberries and stir to combine.

- Cook on a griddle over medium low heat.

- Enjoy!