Maple Syrup

Maple syrup is the only natural native-American sweetener. It can be argued that it is the only native flavoring. The Iroquois were regularly tapping sugar maples for their sap by the time the first colonists arrived in New England. It flavored most of their dishes, from porridge to roasted game. They even used blocks of maple sugar for currency. Soon the colonists began tapping the maple reserves in their forests rather than importing honey bees from Europe. For one thing, it was cheaper.

GIVEN Atlantic City's rich African-American history and culture, the city should be a destination for Southern-style comfort cuisine. Among those surprised to find that that wasn't the case was Carl Redding, who late last year opened Redding's Restaurant on the northwest corner of Pacific and Kentucky avenues. "What I saw was an opportunity to open up my style of restaurant," explained Redding. "There were no other restaurants [in Atlantic City] that do what I do - comfort cuisine, soul food.

They say it's an acquired taste, but for those who enjoy real maple syrup on pancakes or waffles, the flavor is hard to beat. And if that maple tree in the back yard looks ripe for tapping, Ted Groff says that now is the time that the sap is flowing. "Usually from late February until March, the sap that has been stored in the tree is ready to flow," said Groff, park naturalist for Central Park, a 1,200-acre park south of Lancaster. "For the past 12 years, we have tapped the same 15 trees to show visitors how to get syrup from maple trees," he said.

Maple Sugar Weekend, complete with demonstrations and storytelling, will take place at two Montgomery County sites, Mill Grove/Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary and Green Lane Reservoir Park Nature Center. Mill Grove's activities are scheduled from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. tomorrow. Green Lane Reservoir Park will hold Sunday's events from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Activities at both sites will include demonstrations of the maple process from sap to syrup, as well as stories about the history and folklore of the process.

While it may be too early to seriously think about spring, an annual rite heralding the approach of that season is about to take place at Springton Manor Farm in Glenmoore. From early February until late March, the clear sticky sap from sugar maple trees is ready to flow into waiting buckets and then be boiled into maple syrup. And at the 10th annual Maple Sugar Festival on March 7, visitors will learn how to unlock this sugary treat from centuries-old trees that line "Maple Lane" on the grounds of the Chester County Parks and Recreation Department's demonstration farm.

This is sap season, and for weeks now, country folk in some of the colder parts of the nation have been getting themselves steamed up over something more than taxes and the high cost of feed. From Maine to Wisconsin, south to Virginia and Indiana, grown men and women have been tromping around in the snow, poking holes in the trees and playing with fire. It's not early spring fever, however; these good people are pursuing an old and very American tradition: They're making maple syrup.

Before I bought a house, I had an apartment so leaky it was like living in a carwash. Those soggy times came to mind one recent midnight, thanks to the Blizzard of '96, when my very expensive, recently installed stamped tin kitchen ceiling begins leaking. Like too many of us in these days of melt, freeze, melt, freeze, I had three feet of snow with nowhere to go on a flat roof. Expecting the worst - a leak leads to a hole leads to a flood - I rushed to my basement for my trusty zinc bucket spattered by cement and clambered double time back up the stairs, where a steady PLUNK/PLUNK/PLUNK articulated the wintry heartbeat of my house.

One recent Friday, Chuck Katzenbach Jr. pulled on four or five warm flannel shirts, picked up an electric drill, and headed out into the cold. That day was the beginning of about six weeks of daily, finger-numbing, teeth-gritting work for the 51-year-old custom-home-and-furniture builder. Here, on 26 acres of forested property he shares with his wife and 87-year-old father, Katzenbach drilled 225 two-inch holes with a 7/16-inch bit into more than 200 sugar and red maples - a weeklong task he performed with a brace-and-bit drill until last year.

At Zeke's Fifth Street Deli in Society Hill, owners Paul Cohen and Mark Krause offer a Monte Cristo sandwich with a twist. Zeke's version of this popular sandwich spins in the restaurant's Jewish-deli style by using challah French toast with turkey, ham and Swiss cheese. Of course, a Monte Cristo is not a Monte Cristo unless it is served with a side of maple syrup. Mark says this sandwich is for when "someone likes something different. " With its sweet and savory combinations, surely, this sandwich is fit for a king - or at least a count.

1 quart ripe strawberries 2 tablespoons maple syrup or other sweetener 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1. Wash, hull, and cut strawberries into 3 or 4 pieces each. 2. Add lemon juice and maple syrup. Mix gently. From the kitchen of Giuliana and Bob Pierson Per serving (based on 6): 49 calories, 1 gram protein, 12 grams carbohydrates, 9 grams sugar, trace fat, no cholesterol, 2 milligrams sodium, 2 grams dietary fiber.

For banana and dried cherry syrup: 2 cups granulated sugar 2 cups water 8 ounces dried cherries 12 ounces bananas, sliced 2 cups maple syrup For waffles: 3 eggs, separated 3 tablespoons granulated sugar ? cup all-purpose flour 1/4 cup cocoa powder 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1/4 cup milk 2 tablespoons oil   1. To make the sauce, bring water and sugar to a simmer until it just begins to turn a light amber color.

10 for the Road Connecticut. Brookfield Film Festival 2012 - "Shorts and to the Point" runs March 30-31 at Brookfield Theatre for the Arts, 182 Whisconier Rd. $10. 8 p.m. March 30; 4 and 8 p.m. March 31. Reservations suggested. 203-775-2895; www.brookfieldartscommission.org . Delaware. "Spring Concert" by the Mid-Atlantic Symphony Orchestra, with conductor Julien Benichou, will be 7:30 p.m. March 24 at Mariner's Bethel Church, Ocean View. $35; students $15; children $5. 888-846-8600; www.midatlanticsympony.org . Maryland.

Children and teens get too much added sugar in their diets, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nearly one in every six calories they eat and drink comes from some type of added sugar. That isn't exactly surprising, but the statistics underscore the magnitude of the problem. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey of U.S. children and teens ages 2 to 19 found that: Boys consumed an average of 361 calories' worth of added sugar a day. For girls, the daily average was 282. Though the total amount of added sugar in the diet was higher for boys than for girls, the proportion of total calories from added sugar was similar - 16.3 percent for boys and 15.5 percent for girls.

Makes 4 servings 1 cup heavy cream 1 package Knox gelatin 1/3 cup pure maple syrup 1/2 ounce bourbon 1 cup whole milk 1. Combine half of the cream and the gelatin in a small saucepan and cook over low heat to dissolve the gelatin, about 5 minutes or less. 2. Heat remaining cream, bourbon and maple syrup in a separate pan until it begins to steam. Once the gelatin has dissolved and the maple-bourbon mixture has steamed, combine the two mixtures with the whole milk.

GIVEN Atlantic City's rich African-American history and culture, the city should be a destination for Southern-style comfort cuisine. Among those surprised to find that that wasn't the case was Carl Redding, who late last year opened Redding's Restaurant on the northwest corner of Pacific and Kentucky avenues. "What I saw was an opportunity to open up my style of restaurant," explained Redding. "There were no other restaurants [in Atlantic City] that do what I do - comfort cuisine, soul food.

12 (21-25 count) shrimp cooked, peeled, and halved lengthwise 2 ounces dried rice vermicelli, cooked and cooled 8 rice-paper wrappers 1/2 cup mung bean sprouts, rinsed 1 bunch each fresh mint, Thai basil, cilantro 1 Thai chili, julienned 1 small cucumber peeled, seeded and cut into matchsticks 2 large scallions, cut into matchsticks 4 Boston lettuce leaves, halved Nuoc mam fish sauce (optional) Hoisin sauce (optional) Sriracha (optional)

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. ? This time, the ball wasn't jumping left or right off the putter of Phil Mickelson. The stroke was as pure as maple syrup, the result usually a resounding "clunk" in the bottom of the cup. One day after going an entire round without a birdie at Pebble Beach Golf Links, Mickelson drained six Friday in the U.S. Open to put himself in a position to break through for his first victory in the national championship after five...