The net of it is, you can celebrate a waffle holiday twice a year! Prepared sweet or savory, they can be served at breakfast, lunch or dinner.

In different parts of the world, waffles are topped with confectioners’ sugar, honey, jam, even peanut butter. But in the U.S., what are waffles without maple syrup?

And what’s with the different types of maple syrup?
 
 
GRADES (VARIETIES) OF MAPLE SYRUP

Because maple syrup is tapped in the winter, it has traditionally been seen as a winter flavor. But just like honey and sugar, it can be enjoyed year-round in recipes from cocktails to salad dressings and marinades to desserts.

If you’re confused by the four grades of maple syrup (A Light Amber, A Medium Amber, A Dark Amber and B) here’s an explanation of the different types.

Chicken and waffles. Photo courtesy Daniel Krieger | Sweet Chick | Brooklyn.

We recently received a bottle of Crown Maple syrup, certified organic. It is produced by Madava Farms, a family business in the historic Hudson River Valley of New York (Dutchess County).

There, 800 acres of century-old, sustainably managed groves of sugar and red maples enjoy perfect soil and ideal seasonal weather conditions to produce a superior sap for maple sugaring.

But production is a key determinant of quality. Far from the old primitive sugar house, Crown premium maple syrup is made at the most advanced maple syrup production facility in the country. The pristine sap collected from the maples is cooked using the latest in green, organic production techniques to produce syrups of exceptional quality.
 
CROWN SYRUP VARIETIES

As you can see from these tasting notes, different grades pair better with specific recipes.

Light Amber Syrup

 
Medium Amber Syrup

Dark Amber Syrup

 
Crown Maple Extra Dark for Cooking

 
Where To Purchase

A 12-ounce bottle, gift boxed, is $16.95; a samplers of all three is $59.95; and a “petite trio” of three small bottles (1.7 ounces each) is $15.95. An 12-ounce bottle of Extra Dark Syrup for Cooking is $27.95.

A 10-ounce bag of maple sugar (see below) is 10.95.

Buy them online at CrownMaple.com.

The Ur-Waffle. Before there were modern waffles, there were the rustic hotcakes of the Neolithic Age (ca. 6000 B.C.E. to ca. 2000 B.C.E.). Made of cereal pulps, they were cooked on heated stones. Honey is as old as written history, dating back to 2100 B.C.E., where it was mentioned in Sumerian and Babylonian cuneiform writings, the Hittite code and the sacred writings of India and Egypt. We don’t know when man first decided to unite honey and hotcakes, but here’s the honey history.

The Waffle Iron. The waffle iron—enabling pancake-type foods to be turned into textured waffles—was created in the 1200s, when a [presumably] pancake-loving craftsman combined cooking plates that reproduced a pattern of honeycombs.

The Electric Waffle Iron. The electric waffle iron was introduced in 1911 by General Electric.

Types Of Waffles. There are at least 11 varieties of waffles: American, Belgian/Brussels, Liège, Hong Kong Waffle, Krumcake, Malt, Pizzelle, Potato, Soft, Stroopwafel and, yes, Toaster. Take a look at the types of waffles.

Here’s the complete history of waffles.

The Center Of Syrup. Canada produces more than 80% of the world’s maple syrup, the vast majority in Quebec. Vermont is the biggest U.S. producer, followed by New York and Maine. But no matter how much is produced in the U.S., we need to import the majority of our syrup from Canada. (We have the trees to produce more syrup, but not the people who want to tap them.)
 
 
RECIPE: HOMEMADE WAFFLES WITH A TWIST

Here’s a recipe from Crown that uses maple sugar instead of table sugar for even more maple flavor.

Ingredients For 6 Large Waffles

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT waffle iron to desired temperature.

2. COMBINE all dry ingredients in large mixing bowl and set aside.

3. BEAT eggs in a separate bowl; stir in milk, butter and vanilla. Pour milk mixture into the flour mixture; beat until blended.

4. LADLE batter into heated waffle iron and cook until golden brown; serve immediately with maple syrup.
 
 
WHAT IS MAPLE SUGAR

Maple sugar is made from the sap from the maple tree, as opposed to the juice of sugar cane, from which table sugar is made. It has the same strong maple flavor and aroma as maple syrup.

The sap is boiled until almost all of the water has been evaporated; the remaining product has crystallized. The sugar can be sold in large blocks, molded into small shapes or simply ground into a granulated version that can be used like regular sugar.

Maple sugar can be used in the same way as cane sugar: in coffee, tea, baked goods and cocktails. It adds more complexity and richness than cane sugar.

However, is almost twice as sweet as regular sugar, so when replacing cane sugar, you need to reduce the amount. Try using one-third less, and adjust to taste.

Quite a few artisan chocolatiers are also pastry chefs. Rachel Ferneau makes chocolates as Dear Coco, but was previously the proprietor of Eden Cake, a made-to-order kosher pareve bakery serving metro Washington, D.C.

While we’ve missed the opportunity to try her desserts, she was kind enough to send us some chocolate.

Everything from this artisan chocolatier is 100% handcrafted in small batches. The chocolates are completely dairy-free, all natural and certified kosher pareve by Star-K.

In both her baking and her chocolates, flavors of the world are evoked with coffees and teas, exotic salts, fine herbs, flowers, fruits, roasted nuts and spices.

Recently, Dear Coco launched a creative line of vegan-friendly artisan chocolate bars: Toffee Chocolate Bars. Eight unique bars are embedded with toffee and the spices that evoke each of the eight globally-inspired locations.

The toffee is made with vegan butter* in order to be pareve† and lactose free. This substitution, so that the bars can be enjoyed anytime by kosher observers, makes them vegan-friendly as well. Yes, it cuts down on the butteriness of the toffee; but there is so much other layering of flavors that no one will notice.

The Oaxaca bar invokes the moles of Oaxaca, Mexico with cinnamon toffee and pepitas. Photo by Elvira Kalviste | THE NIBBLE.

NEW & SPECIAL: TOFFEE CHOCOLATE BARS

All of the bars are made with dark chocolate and a touch of sea salt.

The 3.5-ounce bars are $7.50 each. A gift set of eight (all the flavors) is $54.00.

Get yours at DearCoco.com.

 
*Products like Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks are made from expeller-pressed oils that have 0g trans fats. More information.

†Kosher law prohibits the consumption of dairy and meat products together. Pareve is a classification of foods that contain neither dairy nor meat ingredients, and can be eaten with both groups. Pareve foods include eggs, fish and all foods that are grown—cereals, fruits, nuts, vegetables, etc.
  

Here’s how to add fiber to a meatloaf and have fun with it. The recipe is courtesy Popcorn.org, the website of The Popcorn Board.

Don’t expect pieces of popcorn popping up in the slices of meatloaf. The popcorn is ground in the food processor and used instead of breadcrumbs, which (unless they’re whole wheat breadcrumbs) contribute zero fiber.

See if anyone can guess what the “secret ingredient” is. (Food fun: You can tip them off by garnishing the meatloaf with a sprinkle of popcorn.)

Preparation time is 10 minutes; baking time is 1 hour.
 
 
RECIPE: POPCORN MEATLOAF

Ingredients For 6 Servings

1. PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Spray an 8 x 4-inch loaf pan with cooking spray; set aside.

2. PROCESS popcorn in a blender or food processor until finely ground; pour into a large bowl. Add ground beef, celery, onion, milk, egg, parsley, garlic, salt and pepper. Mix until thoroughly blended.

3. PRESS meat mixture into pan; spread chili sauce over top.

4. BAKE for 1 hour, or until cooked through. Allow to cool 15 minutes before slicing.
  

A tasty first course: a roasted bell pepper wrapped in prosciutto. Photo courtesy Westside Market | NYC.

This recipe fits right in with a pink food party, Valentine’s Day, Easter or Mother’s Day.

RECIPE: PROSCIUTTO WRAPPED BELL PEPPERS

Ingredients For 4 Servings

1. WHISK together olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Add peppers and marinate for 1 hour.

2. FILL each pepper with a piece of mozzarella. Wrap a slice of prosciutto around each pepper.

3. TOP each with a basil leaf and olive, held together with a toothpick.
 
It’s that easy!

Carrots—standard size and baby—are available in six different colors: the familiar deep orange plus burgundy red, deep purple, tangerine (light orange), yellow and white.

They’re a delicious way to add color and crunch to appetizers, salads and entrées. Kids and adults alike love them for their unusual colors—and for helping make family nutrition fun.
 
CARROT HISTORY

The original wild carrots were white, like parsnips. According to Colorful Harvest, marketer of these rainbow carrots, the cultivated purple and yellow carrots—mutations—were eaten more than 1,000 years ago in what is now Afghanistan.

Other colors are the product of generations of traditional plant breeding. Orange carrots were first successfully bred in Holland from an orange mutation by Dutch farmers. Here’s the history of carrots.

Deeply colored produce are rich in nutrients, including antioxidants. Different antioxidants produce the different colors or carrots:

Rainbow carrots from Colorful Harvest. Photo by Elvira Kalviste | THE NIBBLE.

WHERE DO CARROTS GET THEIR COLOR?

Studies indicate that these phytonutrients are also more bio-available and easier to absorb from fresh fruits and vegetables than from other sources.

So they’re not only cute, tasty and good for you: Rainbow carrots are extra-cute and extra-good for you.