ISO: ISO: Interesting recipes using pure maple syrup- a nice neighbor gave me 5 qts. from his trees.

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The plain name doesn't give this dish its due justice ... REC: Chicken Breast and Noodles

When I first read this recipe I was dubious about the maple syrup/fish sauce combination, but decided to try it anyway. It was very good and we all liked it.

Chicken Breast and Noodles
from Legends Café in Wanganui, New Zealand

Chicken & Marinade:

4 chicken breasts, boneless, skin on
4 T light soy sauce
2 T sesame oil
2 tsp fish sauce
3 T maple syrup
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp ginger, minced
black pepper (generous grind)

Noodle Sauce:

2 T light soy sauce
1 T sesame oil
1 tsp fish sauce
2 T maple syrup
1 tsp ginger, chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled & chopped
1 T sweet chilli sauce
2 tsp sesame seeds
¾ c water

Noodles & Veggies:

2 oz shiitake mushrooms
2 bunches baby bok choy
1 T butter
8 oz plump noodles, cooked al dente (i.e. Hokkien - see note)

Garnish: red sweet pepper strips, snow pea shoots or cilantro

Chicken & Marinade: Trim any excess fat from the chicken breasts. Mix all other ingredients in a bowl and add chicken. Marinate in fridge about 4 hours, turning once.

Noodle Sauce: Mix all ingredients together and set aside.

Remove and discard the hard ends from the mushroom stalks and slice the caps. Cut the ends from the bok choy bunches, allowing the leaves to separate.

Remove the chicken from the marinade and lightly brown in a hot pan. Transfer to a 400°F oven until cooked (about 15 minutes, depending on the size).

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a wok or large fry pan and add the mushrooms. Fry, stirring, for 3 minutes, then add the bok choy, noodles and noodle sauce. Heat through and allow the sauce to reduce and the noodles to heat through, about 3 minutes.

To Serve: Divide the noodle mixture among the four heated plates, slice each chicken breast into three diagonally and arrange on top, garnished with strips of red sweet pepper, snow pea shoots or cilantro.

Serves 4.

Note: Linguine will work here, or even a very thin pasta such as spaghettini, but don’t overcook it. The dish is also good with rice noodles. Soften them first and reduce the sauce before adding the rice noodles for a quick reheating – the overcook very quickly.

My Notes: I removed the chicken skin and used linguini for the noodles. I also substituted 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil for the butter, when sautéing the mushrooms & bok choy.

 
Is it fall yet?! REC: Maple Glazed Brussels with Chestnuts

If you still have some of that lovely maple syrup left at Thanksgiving or Christmas, here is another recipe for you. We found this a bit too sweet for our tastes and will probably reduce the syrup to 3 tablespoons next time.

Maple Glazed Brussels Sprouts with Chestnuts
from Culinary Café

¾ c chestnuts (fresh roasted or canned) (I roasted fresh)
1 lb Brussels sprouts, cleaned & trimmed.
1/3 c maple syrup
2 T butter
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 375°F.

If fresh chestnuts are used, score the shells with an “x” using a paring knife. Then put on a cookie sheet and toast in the oven until the meat pulls from the shells and they can be easily be removed. (If using canned chestnuts, drain and dry them.)

Bring 2 quarts of water and 1 teaspoon salt to a boil.

Cut a ¼” deep cross into the bottom of each Brussels sprout. Drop them into the boiling water and cook until they are fork tender. Immediately drain the sprouts and drop them into ice water to shock and cool. Cut each Brussels sprout in half.

Put the maple syrup into a 10” sauté pan and warm. Add the Brussels sprouts and bring to a boil. Quickly add the chestnuts and stir in the whole butter. The syrup and butter will thicken and glaze the sprouts.

Season with salt and pepper; serve.

Serves 10.

 
No, we haven't made maple cream, but I've seen it. I think it is made..

by whipping the syrup when it reaches a certain sugar concentration. I believe it softens when you spread it on warm toast or pancakes.
A gift of maple syrup, is a special gift. It takes anywhere from 40 to 60 gallons of sap to make one gallon of syrup. For us that's two days of boiling. Then the maple cream is another step beyond syrup. I don't know about the maple cream, but the syrup will keep indefinitely. Store it in a cool dark cupboard. After I open a jar, I refrigerate it, because mold can form on the top. If you do get mold, just spoon it off; the syrup is still good. The maple cream may separate after time.
You'll probably think of all kinds of ways to use the syrup. It's delicious on mashed sweet poatoes or squash. A drizzle on oatmeal is super. Have fun.

 
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