Maple Carrot Cake Muffins Recipe

maple carrot cake muffins sitting on a burlap placemat on a wooden table

Maple Carrot Cake (Healthy Version)

This high-protein, gluten-free, high-nutrient dish is great for breakfast on the go and lunchbox snacks.
Prep Time 30 mins
Cook Time 40 mins
Course Breakfast, Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 10 large carrots peeled and cut into 2" chunks
  • ½ cup pure maple syrup
  • 1 cup old-fashioned oats
  • 10 medium eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 cup chopped nuts or raisins (optional)

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9” x 13” pan or line muffin tins with papers.
  • Combine everything but nuts and raisins in a food processor or powerful blender. You can slightly cook carrots to make this go smoother but it’s not necessary. Blend until smooth and stir in nuts and raisins if using. Pour into pan or tins. Bake until center is set about 45 minutes.
  • Let cool. Cut into slices and serve topped with pure maple syrup, nut butter, honey or fresh fruit. Store in refrigerator. Makes approx. 6 servings.
Keyword carrot cake recipes, cooking with pure maple syrup, healthy carrot cake, high protein breakfast recipes

Maple Sap DIY Cooking Methods

Maple sap cooking methods range from super simple to full-blown sugar shacks with high level equipment. So where do you start as a home sugarmaker just wanting to boil a few gallons of sap into pure maple syrup? This article will walk you through the most common DIY, proven, at-home cooking methods so you can get ready for the season.

Steamy kettle of maple sap over wood fire.

Start with Safety

Before we get any further into the boiling, let’s talk safety. During this process, you will be working with fire or flammable gases and handling large quantities of boiling hot, sticky syrup. Please be careful, especially if children are helping you. Wear long sleeves, pants, and gloves to protect from splatters. Don’t try to pour sap from large pans without help. Make sure you have a first aid kid and a bucket of water or hose nearby for emergencies.

Why Do We Boil Sap?

Maple sap is approximately 95% water and your job is to remove the water and concentrate the sugar into pure maple syrup. The flavor of your finished syrup is created by the caramelization of the sugars during the boiling process. The longer the sap is boiled in the pan, the darker and stronger the flavors become. Along with the tree qualities and storage/collection issues, flavor can also be affected by the cleanliness of your cooking and storage systems. Stainless steel is the best choice for boiling and glass jars or bottles are the best.

Indoors or Outdoors

You will be tempted to boil your sap down on the kitchen stove – be warned that everything around the pot will be sticky! Even the steam coming off your pot contains tiny bits of sugar which will cling to every surface. Instead of dealing with a sticky mess, make a space for yourself outside. You’ll need overhead shelter in case it starts to rain or snow or the weather turns cold while you’re boiling. This is why many build a “sugar shack” but a temporary outdoor space with a tarp ready to cover overhead works just fine. For small batches you can finish your syrup inside on the kitchen stove.

Maple Sugar Shack with steam coming out the chimney.

What Type of Cooker or Fuel Source

The boiling down process will take many, many hours and greatly depends on how much sap you’re starting with. The choice really depends on your access to wood or propane, how much space you have, and how much syrup you plan to make.

The key is surface area – the more surface area in the pan, the faster water will evaporate. This is why most people choose an oblong flat pan to boil in.

Small batches (10 gallons sap per year) can be cooked on a single-burner propane cooker (such as an outdoor fryer/turkey cooker). Larger batches require longer boils and bigger pans and most upgrade to a multi-burner propane cooker or a wood-fired evaporator. You can buy complete evaporator set-ups online or make your own. The DIY options are endless as long as you have time, space, and are a little handy with basic tools.

Outdoor boiling pan of almost-done pure maple syrup.

Building your own wood “stove” is fairly simple and does not require any special skills. Look online for “cement block evaporator plans” and you will find hundreds of ideas. Better yet, visit with another tapper and see how they’ve built their cooker. One of the tappers consulted for in our research used his brother’s metal working skills to build a cooker out of an old 55-gallon drum and an evaporator pan to fit the stove. The only requirement for your cooker is that it can sufficiently hold your pan 18- to 24-inches above the wood fire.

Along with your chosen cooking methods, you’ll need abundant fuel close to your cooking station – enough to last the many hours of boiling. Additionally, you’ll need sufficient lighting in case boiling or bottling goes past dark.

Evaporator and Boiling Pans

For a small-batch hobbyist the boiling process is less complex than for the commercial cooker. Large operations typically use a continuous-feed evaporator which continuously heats the sap, feeds it into another constantly-boiling evaporator pan, and then pours it off for finishing. This is necessary because adding cold sap to a boiling evaporator pan will cause the whole batch’s temperature to drop which will lengthen the boiling time. Most hobbyist tappers use multiple pots and pans to re-create this four-step process:

  1. The first batch of sap for the day is poured into the large evaporator pan, leaving at least 6” to 8” of headroom to prevent boiling over. If all the sap you have fits in your pan, you do not need to do Step 2.

2. Once the sap in the evaporator pan starts to boil and condense, you can start warming extra sap in your other smaller pans.

3. After this extra sap is heated to boiling, pour it into the larger pan remembering to leave headroom to prevent boil over. Continue this process until all your sap is in the large evaporator pan and boil the entire batch to the finishing point.

4. Finally, as the sap nears the 216°F mark in the large evaporator pan, it’s filtered and poured into large kettle (usually the same kettle you used to prewarm it) and then put on a smaller heat source to finish it. This last step keeps the syrup from becoming too shallow in the pan which can lead to overheating or burning.

The rate at which your water evaporates depends on numerous factors such as: pan size and construction; type of heat source; and even the temperature of sap being added to the evaporator. If using a shallow, rectangular pan with lots of surface area, it takes between 9 and 18 hours to produce one gallon of syrup. With a deep, circular pan, it will take much longer.

DIY Evaporator Pan on three-burner propane cooker.

Pre-made hobbyist sized evaporators can be bought online. The advantage of these are they have a draw-off spout which reduces spills and potential burns from trying to pour the boiling sap or syrup out. When buying a pan, choose a heavy-duty pan that can withstand prolonged heat – preferably a large, flat pan with sides at least 6- to 8-inches high to prevent boiling over. Many commercial kitchen supply stores sell large, flat roasting pans which will work for the first stage of boiling but are not thick enough to finish syrup in without burning. A high-quality stock pot works best for the final boiling stage.

You can also find older enamelware or stainless steel pans at auctions, yard sales, or online trading sites – just be sure they are spotless and not corroded or rusty. Keep in mind, though, that whatever system you invent, you will be pouring or moving boiling hot sugary substances out of it! If the pan is too unwieldy or large to move, you could risk serious burns or at least end up spilling your almost-finished syrup.

Large, multi-channeled sap evaporator pan with hydrometer ladle.

Make it Portable or Make it Decorative

Many wood-fired cookers look similar to backyard brick pizza ovens and you could easily adapt that design to fit your pan. Then after the season, you can still use it! If you don’t want to look at your cooker all year, consider building it out of material you can easily disassemble it or move it once the season is over.

Community Syrup Making

Consider joining forces with friends and neighbors to build a community cooker where everyone brings their sap and shares the process. This is a fun way to build time with family and friends; grow an outdoor-centered hobby; and boil more sap than you can do on your own. Join up with your local online groups to find other sugarmakers in your area. You might be surprised by how many folks are out there doing this same thing!

Maple Tapping 101

Would you like to learn one of the simplest skills that fills your shelves with pure maple syrup? We promise your family will enjoy this winter hobby! If you can run a drill, boil water, and read a candy thermometer, you have the knowledge to get started. And after a few weeks, you’ll have a year’s supply of syrup and the skills you need to do this every year.

And with all the great resources here at Maple Tapper, you’ll always have support! We’re tapping, too, and we’re on call during the whole season plus we’ve shared all that we know in this blog, in our books (included in most kits), and in our new video course (here).

Are you ready to do this? Here’s three simple preseason steps you can do right now:

Step #1 (time required: approximately 15 minutes): Assemble your tools (most of which you probably have in the garage and kitchen already). Here’s what you’ll need:

  • Well-charged cordless drill (or manual hand brace) with a 5/16” wood-boring drill bit marked at 1 ½” (with marker or masking tape) from the tip
  • A small hammer
  • Spiles (the technical term for tap!) and either tubing or an all-in-one bucket system. The tubes are nice because they store flat but it’s totally your choice. (Shop gear here)
  • Collection containers such as buckets or gallon jugs with lids. Avoid containers that have held milk, pickle juice, or oily substances and do not wash with dish soap – these all can impart weird flavors to your sap.
  • Syrup making filters – try our one-quart, DIY filters (here)
  • Kitchen utensils; pots for cooking; a way to boil your sap (more on that at this article: “Maple Sap DIY Cooking Methods”; and jars with sealable lids (Mason jars with lids/rings work well)..

Step #2 (time required 5 minutes or less): Find a tree or two. The best choice for the sweetest syrup is to tap a sugar (or hard) maple tree but you can also try silver maple, box elder, or even birch (much more info on that in our book.). The best way to identify a sugar maple is to go out in the fall and a) look at the leaf color – sugar maples typically have the most colorful red, orange, or yellow leaves or b) look for the seeds (those little “helicopter” seeds we played with as kids). Hard maples drop seeds in the late summer or early fall and soft maples drop seeds in spring and early summer.

Over the entire season, you can expect approximately 10- to 12-gallons of sap per taphole which will boil down to about one quart of syrup. Trees can handle more than one tap but make sure you can handle more than 10 gallons! You do not have to own a plot of land in the country to find maple trees. Town syrup is just as sweet as country syrup – in fact, recent research has shown that “boulevard” grown trees actually produce more sap than forest-grown trees because they have more space to grow. The one note here: don’t tap trees that live in areas treated with chemicals such as pesticides or herbicides used on lawns.

Step #3 (time required 30 seconds per day): Watch the weather. Now comes the waiting and watching portion of this hobby (we know, this is kind of like other parts of winter.) What you’re looking for is a forecast that includes a pattern of cold nights but warming days. Sap starts to run when nighttime temps fall below freezing but daytime temps get into the 40°Fs. This usually happens around January or February and once you see this pattern forecasted for the next week or so, it’s time to get out there and tap your trees. Don’t try to get a head start by tapping before this weather pattern emerges – that could cause your spile to freeze inside the taphole which could damage the tree. Tapping is so quick you don’t need to do it ahead of time!

Step #4 (a few weeks, hopefully): Once the sap runs, you’ll go out every day and collect it at the tree. Depending on how you’re cooking, you’ll spend a few hours boiling (this is literally just boiling water so all you need to do is keep an eye on it and keep the heat on). The full boiling, filtering, and bottling process is covered in this article: “How to Make Maple Syrup”.

How to Measure Sugar Content in Pure Maple Syrup.

Pure maple syrup should be between 66 and 68 Brix when tested with a refractometer or hydrometer . . . whoa, is that too many technical terms for you? Don’t worry, this article will explain it all and show you how easy it is to use these tools and produce the best quality syrup you’ve ever had. Most professional sugarmakers (and many home hobbyists) use two tools to measure sugar content — hydrometers and refractometers. Keep reading for more info on each.

Hydrometers

The more dense the liquid, the more sugar it contains — the hydrometer measures this relative density. Most hydrometers use a common scale of degrees Brix (shown as °Bx) which shows the sugar percentage of the liquid. One °Bx equals 1% sugar content. For pure maple syrup, the target density range is between 66% and 68% sugar content (shown on the hydrometer as 66° Brix or 35.6° Baume). Many states have a required Brix scale for folks selling maple syrup so if you’re going to market you must test your syrup.

This tool is fairly inexpensive and consists of a tall metal cup and the marked hydrometer tool which looks sort of like an old fashioned thermometer but much bigger. Be sure you buy the type of hydrometer calibrated for syrup making as they’re also sold for beer and wine. It’s also another one of those tools that will last for many seasons if you take good care of it. Typically these hydrometers are calibrated to measure cold syrup (at 60°F) or hot syrup (at least 211°F) and will be marked with a cold test and hot test line.

metal hydrometer tube hanging on the side of a steaming maple syrup evaporator pan
A hydrometer hangs on the side of a maple syrup evaporator as steam rises from the evaporator. The operator uses the hydrometer to test whether the syrup is done.

To use the hydrometer, first place the cup in a level pan with a lip as syrup will splash over the sides (or hang over the side of evaporator pan as shown here). Fill the cup with syrup to within ½” or so of the rim. Immerse your thermometer and make sure it reads at least 211°F if testing hot. Then carefully lower in the hydrometer – do not drop it in! It will float and the red line should be even with the surface which indicates the Brix reading. If in the proper range, return this syrup to the pan and continue with filtering and bottling.

hydrometer measurement

If you find the red line floats below the surface, syrup must be boiled longer and tested again. If the red line floats above the surface, syrup is “heavy” and too sugary or dense and you’ll need to add partially-boiled sap, cook a bit longer, and retest. While extra-sugary syrup sounds yummy, it will be more like maple sugar once it cools. After you’re done testing, be sure to rinse the hydrometer in hot water so no syrup accumulates on the device. Be careful, it is fragile!

Refractometers

Simpler to use but quite a bit more expensive, a refractometer (either manual or digital) determines sugar concentrations by measuring how light is refracted through a sugary solution. Typically a drop of sap or syrup is placed in a little cup at the end of the device and it’s held up to light (or with digital devices, just push a button). As light passes through the syrup, it’s refracted and the tool is designed to pick this up and measure it on the Brix scale. Refractometers, though, come with different scales – a low scale to measure sap and a higher scale to measure syrup.

See it in action

You know how much we love the folks at our country’s Extension offices! They provide such an incredible wealth of knowledge for all things outside and are generally pretty nice people who love to help. And they did not disappoint us here – we found this great video from the University of Maine Extension services that shows each of these tools in action and does a great job explaining how they all work.

If you’d like to learn more about other steps of the sugarmaking process, click here to look through our library of How To articles.

Maple Cream Sandwich Cookies

blue plate with maple leaf shaped cookies with maple cream filling and a half-filled bottle of maple syrup sitting beside it.

Maple Cream Sandwich Cookies

Delicious cookies made with pure maple syrup
Course Dessert
Cuisine American

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup unsalted butter
  • ½ cup light brown sugar
  • ¾ cup pure maple syrup, divided (1/2 cup and 1/4 cup)
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 ¼ cups all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1 cup confectioners' (powdered) sugar

Instructions
 

  • Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).
  • Cream together butter, 1/2 cup maple syrup and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg and vanilla extract.
  • In a separate mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until well combined.
  • Once combined, chill dough for approximately 2 hours.
  • Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface to about 1/4-inch thickness. Use a maple leaf-shaped or round cookie cutter to cut out cookies. Transfer the cookies to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Chill cut outs for another hour.
  • Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden. Allow cookies to cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
  • To make the maple cream filling, whisk together the confectioners' sugar, 1/4 cup maple syrup, and heavy cream until smooth. If the mixture is too thick, add a little more heavy cream until it reaches a spreadable consistency.
  • Put filling in a piping bag and pipe approximately 1 tsp into center of cookie bottom. Put other cookie on top and squeeze together to flatten filling.
  • Store in airtight container.

Notes

A delicious cookie recipe filled with maple goodness and perfect for snack time and lunch boxes.
 
Keyword maple sandwich cookies

Vegan Chickpea Sandwich Spread Recipe.

Two halves of a chickpea salad sandwich stacked on top of each other.

Vegan Chickpea Sandwich Spread

Easy-to-make vegan chickpea salad that's delicious in a sandwich or as a dip.
Course Main Course, Snack
Servings 2 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 3 TB Tahini
  • 2 TB Unsweetened Nut Milk (can substitute soy- or oatmilk)
  • 1 TB Pure Maple Syrup
  • 1 tsp Cider Vinegar
  • 1 tsp Dijon Mustard
  • ½ tsp Dried Dill (optional)
  • cups Chickpeas (canned, rinsed, drained)
  • ½ Red Onion, finely diced
  • 2 Green Onions, finely diced

Instructions
 

  • Whisk together tahini, nut milk, maple syrup, cider vinegar, dijon mustard, salt, and dill.
  • Add chickpeas, red onions, and green onions to a large bowl and mash to thick consistency.
  • Stir tahini sauce into chickpea mixture.
  • Combine with your favorite sandwich toppings and enjoy. Remaining spread will keep for about a week in the refrigerator.
Keyword chickpea salad recipe, pure maple syrup recipes, vegan sandwich spread, vegetarian lunch recipes

Recipe for Homemade Granola with Maple Syrup

bowl of homemade granola with nuts, seeds, and a spoon on a wodden talbe

Homemade Granola with Maple Syrup

Easy recipe for making delicious and nutritious granola
Course Breakfast, Snack
Cuisine American
Servings 6 cups

Ingredients
  

  • 2 ½ cups Old Fashioned Oats not quick cooking
  • 1 cup Wheat Germ
  • ¼ cup Flax Seed (ground)
  • ½ cup Unsweetened Coconut (shaved)
  • 1 cup Nuts, coarsely chopped, unsalted
  • ½ cup Sunflower Seeds, unsalted
  • ½ cup Pumpkin Seeds (Pepitas)
  • 2 tsp Cinnamon
  • 1 tsp Salt
  • ¾ cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil or Melted Butter
  • ¾ cup Pure Maple Syrup
  • ½ cup Dried Fruit

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • In a large mixing bowl, combine the oats, wheat germ, flax seed, coconut, nuts, sunflower seeds, cinnamon, and salt.  Stir until evenly combined. For extra flavor, lightly toast the seeds and nuts.
  • In a medium bowl, combine the pure olive oil (or butter) andmaple syrup and whisk until it thickens.
  • Pour maple syrup mixture on top of the oat mixture.  Stir well, until oats are wet and evenly coated. Spread evenly across the rimmed baking sheet. Bake for 30- 35 minutes until evenly toasted, stirring every 10 minutes.
  • Allow to cool completely, about 1 hour, before adding dried fruit.  Toss to combine and store in anairtight container for 1-2 weeks.
Keyword cooking with pure maple syrup, homemade granola recipe, maple syrup recipes

Maple Syrup Filtering FAQ

pouring hot maple syrup through two one-quart white filters to remove sugar sand or niter.

Why does my filter seem clogged or slow? This can have two answers:

1. The filter is full of sugar sand! Our one-quart filters are designed for small batches (2 to 3 quarts) and after that much syrup, they will start to clog up with sugar sand. To solve this problem, have a second filter set up to use to finish your batch.

2. Alternately, the syrup could be cooling down too much in the filter which makes it flow slower. This is an easy fix: pour only enough to fill one jar at a time. Just set the pan aside, cover it with a lid to keep the heat in, and keep refilling the filter as the syrup level gets down to about ½”. Note: be sure when lifting the lid off your pan, you tip it away from the pan so the moisture does not fall back into the syrup.

Why is the syrup dripping out the upper sides of the filter?

Our filters are made from filter material all the way up so syrup will go through all of it. If you fill it up to the top, the upper part of the filter will get saturated and syrup will start to drip through. Keep the syrup level low (as described in #1) and only as wide as the jar you’re filling.

How do I clean the thick filter?

Your filters should dry out between uses and could grow bacteria is allowed to remain wet. After syrup making, rinse the filter with hot water until all the sugar sand is removed. Filters may remain slightly darker after use and that is okay. Once through rinsed, hang upside down and open so it can drip dry. We usually balance it on a dowel (pointy end up) and prop it in a jar. Do not wring or twist the filter as that can break down the fibers and distort the shape.

Why is my filter brownish?

It is normal for the filter to take on a little brown color after use. Just make sure you’re thoroughly cleaning the filter after each boil with hot water. The spray setting on your sink nozzle works best to rinse away the sugar sand.

Can I reuse filters next year?

Yes! These filters last for a long time as long as they are properly cared for. Don’t wring or twist and always thoroughly dry before putting away. At the end of the season store in a sealed bag in a dry area.

Maple Tapping Preseason Checklist

Most years, it feels like the maple sap run has a mind of its own! We want it to start early and last for a long time but Mother Nature is in charge here. And all we can do is be ready to make the most of it.

If you’re a beginner, the most important thing to know: temperatures determine everything that happens during the season. When the nighttime temps fall below freezing and are followed by a daytime temperature in the 40s, the sap will begin to flow. This pattern needs to be consistent for a few days for it to really kick in. Then, as each day progressively gets warmer and the sap flows through the tree, it will start to wake up. Once a tree “buds out”, the season is done as this can make the sap off-tasting.

Typically, this temperature range happens in late February and early March and the sap run can last into April. It depends on so many factors: where you live (southern areas’ seasons start sooner) and the weather during that year. The key is to watch the forecast and be ready. It’s a lot like being a surfer! When the waves are good, we go out there.

We’ve put together a checklist to help you prepare. Most of this gear you already have in your garage or kitchen. You only need the specialized tapping and filtering gear to make your own pure maple syrup. Just click below to download and feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

How to Tap Maple Trees

Making maple syrup is an age-old activity, the sugarmaking process is not complicated, and you can easily learn everything you need to know in one season. Once you have the tools assembled, it really takes less than 5 minutes to tap a tree. This section will first give you step-by-step tapping instructions and then answer a few common questions people have about sugarmaking. Much more detailed information can be found in our book, Guide to Maple Tapping, which is included in every kit and also available electronically. Additionally, our video and article library includes how-to videos and instructions on selecting a tree, drilling the hole, and using each of our systems. Please check back often as we’re updating all of these resources with new material.

Step One: Identify and Mark Your Trees

Hard maples, also called sugar maple, black maple, or rock maple, have the highest sugar content and produce the best tasting syrup. You can also tap the red or silver maple but the sugar content is lower so you’ll have lower syrup yields and longer boil times. Folks also tap the box elder tree and the finished product has a heavy, sorghum-like flavor.  

The best time to identify a maple tree is in the summer or fall when it is in full leaf. Maple trees all have the same characteristics with slight and subtle variations between each subspecies of tree. Consult an illustrated tree reference guide for more details. Common but distinctive features of maple trees include:

  • Helicopter seeds (technically called samaras) with two v-shaped wings that flutter down and away from the tree. Hard maples drop seeds in the late summer or early fall and soft maples drop seeds in spring and early summer.
  • Separately lobed leaves – typically five lobes prominent valley between each lobe. Hard maples typically have a “U” shaped valley and soft maples have a more “V” shaped valley.
  • Hard maples have darker green leaves with smoother points and the most vivid orange, red, and yellow fall colors. Soft maples have a lighter yellow-green color, much pointier leaves, a white or silver underside, and mostly yellow fall colors.
  • Hard maples have light to dark gray bark with narrow, deep furrows while soft maples have a more layered, flaky bark.
  • Hard maples are most prevalent in southern Canada, the Upper Midwest, the Northeastern states, and down the eastern seaboard of the United States. Sugar maples can be grown outside these areas but require climates with a freeze/thaw cycle to produce tasty sap.

Once you’ve identified the tree, choose a tree at least 12” in diameter with a full canopy of strong healthy branches. Tie weather-resistant marking tape around your tree so you can easily find it in the spring.

Step Two: When to Tap

The tapping season varies from region to region but generally starts in early March and lasts until mid-April. When the sap starts and stops running depends greatly on day and nighttime temperature fluctuations. Watch the weather forecast – sap starts flowing when the temperatures are below freezing at night but climb to the 40°F and above range during the day. If this freeze/thaw pattern is predicted, get out and tap your trees! Don’t be tempted to do it early, though, as this could cause the sap to freeze in your spiles which could damage your equipment and the tree. Remove your taps when you have enough sap or when the tree buds out as that can lead to an off or “buddy” flavor in the finished syrup.

Step Three: Drilling the Taphole

No matter what system you choose, the drilling procedure is the same. The only variation is the size of drill bit needed – most of our kits use a 5/16” spile so that is the size drill bit you’d need. Select a wood-boring drill bit and mark it with tape or a marker at 1½” from the end. This mark will show you where to stop drilling so you only go into the sapwood. Pick a spot on the tree trunk approximately four-feet off the ground below a large branch or above a large root. If using a bucket or jug that will sit on the ground, be sure your tubing will reach the bucket even after the snow melts underneath it.

Drill at a slightly upwards angle into the tree and do not go deeper than 1 ½”. Shavings that come out of the hole should be creamy or light yellow and sap will most likely start running immediately.

Step Four: Inserting the Spile

Once the hole is drilled, you simply insert the spile, gently tap it in with a hammer until it feels snug, and attach your bucket, jug, or bag to collect sap. This tap will stay in the tree for the entire season.

Step Five: Collecting Sap

Each day, you will come back to the woods to collect your sap. Sap left sitting in buckets can grow bacteria – this is not harmful as the sap will be boiled but the bacteria will eat away at your sugars which will affect the syrup’s taste. If you can’t boil your sap every day, it can be chilled for a few days until you’ve collected enough to cook. Normally, a single taphole produces between one quart to one gallon of sap per flow-period (which can last a few hours or more than a day.) Please refer to the section “How to Make Maple Syrup” for more information on filtering and boiling down your sap.

Step 6: End of Season Chores

Once you’ve collected enough sap or the trees bud out, simply pry the spiles from the tree with a small claw hammer. The taphole will heal over the summer and the same tree can be tapped year-to-year, although you cannot reuse the same taphole. Thoroughly rinse all of your equipment – do not use detergents – let air dry and store away for next season.

A Few Common Questions

Do I need special tools for tapping?

Yes: you will need spiles or taps, something to collect your sap in, and a method of attaching it to the spile. Two of the kits we have available are all-in-one systems where the spile, hook, and bag or bucket all fit together right on the tree. We also sell a tubing kit which comes with the taps inserted into the lengths of tubing which you then can direct into a bucket or use as droplines connected to a common line that leads into a bucket. 

You will also need to take a few extra tools with you to the sugarbush – most of which you probably already own. A few necessities include: a drill with a wood-boring drill bit (5/16” or 7/16” depending on the spile you’re using); a marker; a small hammer; and a few five-gallon, food-grade buckets to transfer your collected sap. Depending on which type of kit you buy, you might also need jugs or buckets for collecting at each tree. Our deluxe kits include many of these extra tools.

What’s the difference between a 7/16” and a 5/16” spile?

Previous generations of sugarmakers used a 7/16” spile but research in the last decade has shown that a 5/16” spile (sometimes called the “health spile” or “tree saver spile”) causes less damage to the tree, allows for faster taphole healing, and does not reduce the sap yield when used with gravity systems such as tubing or buckets. Whenever possible, Maple Tapper uses the 5/16” spile in our kits.

How much sap or syrup will I get from each taphole?

The amount of sap each taphole yields varies greatly depending on the tree, the time of year, environmental conditions such as the weather and soil conditions, and even at what point you are in the tapping season. In a normal season, a single taphole produces approximately 10- to 12-gallons of sap. Your finished yield of syrup will depend on the sugar content of your sap. Generally, assume a 40-to-1 conversion – so 12 gallons of sap will boil down to 1 quart of syrup. With this ratio in mind, you’d need four tapholes to produce one gallon of syrup for the season. 

What parts of the country produce maple sap?

Because the sap “run” is triggered by the freeze-thaw cycle, maple syrup is only produced in the Upper Midwest, the Northeastern U.S., and Canada.

Does tapping hurt the tree?

If the tree is healthy when tapped and proper tapping procedures are followed, the taphole will start healing within weeks of the spile’s removal. Many maple tree farms have been tapping the same trees for over 100 years. Each taphole, however, must be placed in a different spot on the tree from the previous year. One thing to note: the bottom 4- to 6-foot “tapping zone” will result in trees that are less valuable if cut down for lumber.

What makes sap into syrup?

Sap becomes syrup as the water is removed through evaporation and the sugars become concentrated. The flavor of your finished syrup is created by the caramelization of the sugars during the boiling process – the longer the sap is boiled in the pan, the darker and stronger the flavors become. Flavor can also be affected by the tree’s qualities and genetics; by the time of year and method through which sap is collected; and by the cleanliness of the boiling room and storage containers. Please refer to the section “How to Make Maple Syrup” for more details on the syrup making process.

Do I need special tools for boiling?

You will need an outside method of boiling down your sap. Most people use a shallow evaporator pan over a wood fire for the first stage of boiling and then a stainless steel pot on a propane burner or outside stove for the finishing stage. You will also need a candy-type thermometer with a readable, one-degree scale; food-grade, syrup-specific filters; glass jars with sealable lids; and general kitchen tools such as funnels, towels, and wooden spoons. The boiling process is covered in full detail in our book, Guide to Maple Tapping.

How long does it take to boil down the sap?

The rate at which your water will evaporate depends on numerous factors such as: pan size and construction; type of heat source; and even the temperature of sap being added to the evaporator. If using a shallow, rectangular pan with lots of surface area, it takes between 9 and 18 hours to produce one gallon of syrup. With a deep, circular pan, it can take as little as 28 hours and as long as 56 hours.

Can I use maple syrup instead of sugar in my cooking?

It is a good substitute but will impart a maple flavor to your dish. Generally, one cup of pure maple syrup equals one cup of sugar and can be swapped out in most recipes. For cookies and cakes that also use liquid ingredients, just reduce the liquids by three tablespoons for each cup of maple syrup used.

How should I store my finished syrup?

Properly bottled and sealed pure maple syrup should be stored in a cool, dry, dark place and will keep for up to one year. Maple syrup can also be frozen indefinitely – it will not harden, though, due to the high sugar content. Once opened, syrup should be stored in the refrigerator and used within six months of opening. If you notice any mold or discoloration, discard the contents as it may not be safe to eat. Also, do not store your syrup in plastic containers as the syrup may absorb odd flavors or odors from the plastic.