Monday, March 6, 2017

T is for My Birthday and Vermont Maple Syrup

Hi there my T gang friends. Another Tuesday is here.
Its March and I'm back to work after my week off.  And March means spring is thinking about coming here to northern New England. Thinking being the word, since you can never be certain spring will come until  it is at least April. 
But one exciting thing about March is its maple syrup season.
And another exciting thing about March is that its my birthday month.
In fact last Saturday was my birthday and it was just the kind of day I wanted my birthday to be. My family and I went for a little road trip to Vermont. The hubby, my daughter, myself and the 2 dogs all climbed into the car and we went out for lunch at the Norwich Inn.
Well not the dogs. They  curled up and took a nap.
I had this delicious burger and homemade chips and along with the water I had one of these red ales they make in their microbrewery.
This was the perfect birthday lunch!
After lunch we took a walk over to Dan and Whit's- the general store next door to the Inn.
I've shown you photos from here before,like this one I took last spring.
The sign says that if they don't carry it, you don't need it.
They have everything-food, clothing, toys, office supplies, fishing equipment, books, and Saturday my husband discovered a passageway into the back building which none of us knew even existed.
We kept walking further and further back and finding more and more things.
And since we were in Vermont which is famous for their maple syrup, and since it actually is syrup making season, they had a lot of those supplies in stock.
 Instruction books for novices.
 Empty plastic jugs to fill as you boil down the sap and turn it into syrup.
 Buckets and taps for your trees. You put the tap into the sugar maple tree and then on warm days the sap runs into the bucket. Cold nights and warm days are the key for getting a good syrup making season. Once you get the sap you boil it down to evaporate off a lot of the water, leaving behind the sweet tasty maple syrup.
 If you want to go into big time syrup making you need one of these big boilers.
 And if you don't like the plastic bottles, there are glass bottles. I think syrup is suppose to last better in a glass bottle, but I'm not positive about that.
And  you might need maple sugar candy molds. You boil the syrup way down and when it hardens you get this super sweet candy. A bit is all you need, but it is yummy.
No maple syrup for us, but we did have cake that night when we got home.
I couldn't ask for a better birthday.
And
it was a great way to end my vacation.
Have a great T day everyone.

24 comments:

pearshapedcrafting said...

Your burger looks delicious - although it would have to be a chicken one for me! I love all that paraphernalia to do with Maple Syrup - which I love on my porridge - just a little and I swear it's better for me than sugar! Finally caught up! Chrisx

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

I am SO hungry. I haven't eaten all day, and I was ready to climb into my monitor and eat those chips!

My friend Sally brought me a bottle of that maple syrup in a glass maple leaf bottle one year when she was visiting friends in Vermont. I agree that the syrup tastes better in glass.

Thanks for sharing your red ale, your burger and chips, and the trip to Dan and Whit's where you shared the information about making maple syrup. It was a fun trip and I am so sorry I missed your birthday. Hope it was fun and everyone of the T group who visits will remember to wish you a belated happy birthday. Thanks again for joining in for T this soon to be Tuesday.

Rita said...

Yummm!! Happy birthday. I am a March baby, too--but the end of the month. Also a lover of real maple syrup here, too. :)

CJ Kennedy said...

Welcome Home and Happy Birthday! My mouth is watering. I love burgers and real home-made potato chips. Oh, that is the best birthday lunch. there's nothing like real Vermont maple syrup on pancakes, French toast, and waffles. Liquid gold. The girlies like the cheap imitation stuff. Yuck! I'm not fond of the maple sugar candy. I like sweet, but it's too sweet for me. Loved seeing all the maple sugaring stuff. There's a fella down the road apiece and he has a sugar shack keeps that sap boiling

Valerie-Jael said...

Glad you had such a wonderful birthday with your family - happy belated birthday to you! The store you went to looks good, and I loved seeing how maple syrup is made. It's always very expensive here, Happy T Day, hugs, Valerie

johanna said...

i always have a weak Spot for bottles and such... awesome photos.
♪♫ happy birthday ♪♫ !
have a great week and happy t-day!

Meggymay said...

Belated Happy Birthday wishes, it looks like you had a lovely day out.
The burger looked delicious as well as your cake.
Loved the look inside that interesting shop and all the things to make your own syrup.
Happy T day.
Yvonne xx

chrissie said...

Happy Birthday and it certainly looks like you had a fun time and good food.

Happy T Day as well

Love Chrissie xx

Let's Art Journal said...

Happy belated Birthday Erica! That's the perfect birthday celebration with your family, and the burger and real ale looks so delicious - yum! We opened some maple syrup last Tuesday to have on our American pancakes, it was a gift from our friends in Maine and treated wonderful. So I loved visiting the general store with you to look at all the maple syrup bits and pieces. Thanks for sharing your birthday and wishing you every happiness today and all year long! Happy T Day! J :-)

froebelsternchen said...

Happy belated 57th birthday dear Erika!
Wish you all the best !
It was super interesting to learn more about
maple syrup..
I know it not for so long - first it got popular here in 1985 or so, as so many people wanted to loss weight with just lemon and maple leaf syrup..
I never tried this - not for me...lol!
I don't often use "Ahornsirup" -
I prefer honey - we have super honey here in our area.
Happy T-Day -- looks you had a great lunch at your birthday! Yummie!

oxo Susi

Linda Kunsman said...

well happy birthday to you dear Erika! Glad you had some special family time away to enjoy. Your meal looks quite filling.I do love homemade hand cut chips- a nice indulgence once in awhile. It would be so fun to peruse that store:) My friend brought me one of those leaf shaped bottles filled with maple syrup when she had visited up your way. And it really is the best. Happy T day!

Joan said...

Happy Belated Birthday! Sounds like a fun road trip with your family. I enjoy your blog and your artwork.

Jackie PN said...

Happy belated birthday Erika! Looks like you had a fun outing! I LOVE real Maple Syrup! Was it cold enough this year for a good sapping?
Thanks for sharing !
Jackie ")

Carol said...

♩♬♩♬♩♬♩♩♬♬ HAPPY BE-LATED BIRTHDAY ♩♬♩♬♩♬♩♩♬♬
That looks like a great burger and a very interesting store. Back in the 70's I went to a Maple Syrup Retreat and we spent the day harvesting sap and then making syrup. It was done the primitive way like a re-enactment event. HOT and STICKY work!

~*~Patty S said...

Thank you for sharing some of your birthday fun with us dear Erika!
I like that you call it your birthday "month". I am a firm believer in birthdays needing celebrating for more than just one day for sure.
Happy Happy Birthday to you ♥ that glowing cake is truly wonderful!
Dan and Whit's slogan made me smile and how cool to discover more good stuff. Maple syrup fascinates me in every way. Those tall buckets are calling me...just because.
Keep celebrating and Happy T Day too oxo

jinxxxygirl said...

I definitely need one of those candy molds!!! So glad you had a great time for your birthday... I lovely day out and about traveling a little sounds like a great bday gift to me.. Happy happy T day! Hugs! deb

Krisha said...

THAT is my kind of burger!! Looks so delicious and juicy along with the homemade chips yum!!
I've always wanted to visit Vermont and see the gathering of sap. I never realized it was a simple process from sap to syrup........well, at least in theory. I think it would be interesting to give it a try at least once.
Belated birthday wishes and Happy T-day

Lisca said...

A belated happy birthday! You certainly seem to have had a super day! The burger and chips look delicious.
How inbteresting to see the maple syrup parafenelia.We can get maple syrup here but it is excrusiatingly expensive for a tiny bottle, so we don't buy it as a rule, but I have tasted it and it is very yummy indeed.
Happy T-Day,
Lisca

Dianne said...

so interesting to see all of the Maple syrup supplies! not much of that going on in Ohio as there used to be, but still a few sources. i love stores like this that have lots of nooks and crannies to investigate, and you're never quite sure what you'll find. Happy Birthday!

Jeanie said...

Oh Yum! A great looking dinner and a wonderful birthday period! I'm a sucker for maple syrup. Last year we went to watch it being made in MA and we're headed there tomorrow so hopefully he'll be making some! I have to buy some! You have me inspired!

Divers and Sundry said...

Great-looking lunch. We like to try and compare local burgers, and that would get high marks from us, I'm sure.

Those little glass bottles would've been hard for me to resist, even tho I have no use for them lol. Maybe as a bud vase?

Happy T Tuesday!

Eileen The Artful Crafter said...

Happy Birthday, Erika! I'm happy it was so special. Dan & Whit's - I love their motto. What a fun place to visit and how fun that you discovered something new.

You're correct. Glass is best for storing genuine maple syrup. Metal is good too. "Plastic is not the best choice for long-term storage of pure maple syrup. A noticeable degradation in quality may occur in as little as three months, even with refrigeration." [Source]

Our Costco in Guadalajara sells Vermont maple syrup in those maple leaf jars!

Happy T-day! Hugs, Eileen

Faye said...

Wonderful post from the beautiful new cover banner, through the visit to NM and that awesome bridge, and to the visit to Vermont with the sap collecting paraphernalia. Loved the journal pages with that overhead view of the Rio Grande River Gorge and the people on horseback. I have always loved seeing the world from 30,000' up while flying. I love maps too, so I guess I just like to see the bigger picture. Thanks for sharing this and for commenting on my blog.

kathyinozarks said...

Good morning and Happy T day but on a thursday lol just now getting to the computer this morning.
What a fun post! Happy Birthday those handmade chips look especially good too Kathy