How to Make Sugar on Snow

Sugar on Snow is a Vermont specialty. While maple sap boiled in vats during the cold months, sweet sugary aromas would waft out into the snowy woods. The syrup was ready when it reached the "soft ball stage." To check this, small amounts of the hot liquid would be poured onto the snow. If a round elastic candy coin formed on top of the snow, the syrup could be transferred into jugs and cans for selling. Making sugar on snow is a great way to celebrate a snow day when everyone is home from school. It introduces children to a pioneer survival skill, and it taste great. Here's how to make sugar on snow at your house.

Difficulty:

Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Clean snow or finely crushed ice
• Plastic tub
• 8 ounces pure maple syrup
• 1 large saucepan
• Candy thermometer

1. Collect some clean snow. Before the snow has a chance to get dirty, gather some in a plastic tub and place it in the freezer. If you do not want to use actual snow, use crushed ice.

2. Bring 8 ounces of pure maple syrup to a boil. You can use any grade of maple syrup. The highest grade will be the lightest, most amber in color while the lowest grade will resemble dark Karo syrup. Insert a candy thermometer into the pot. Do not leave the kitchen while your syrup is cooking. Like any sugar, it can boil over in a second, so watch it.

3. Monitor the candy thermometer. When the temperature of the syrup reaches the soft ball stage, between 235 to 240 degrees F, remove the pot from the heat. It is now ready to form sugar on snow. You can test whether it is ready even if you do not have a candy thermometer. Drip some of the boiling syrup into a glass of icy cold water. If it forms a ball that you can grab out of the water with your fingers, it is ready.

4. Dribble small amounts - the size of quarters - of the boiling syrup onto the snow or crushed ice. As soon as it touches the frozen surface, it should solidify. If your syrup is not yet at the soft ball stage, it will penetrate deep into the snow and dissipate. Now there are thin, round pieces of chewy sugar dotting the top of the mound of snow or crushed ice.

5. Allow the children to peel the treat from the snow. Pop the pieces into your mouth. Let them melt and taste the sweetness that only happens with real maple syrup. Read a story about the pioneers and the Native Americans who taught them how to make syrup from the sap of the maple tree. Pour the rest of the warm syrup on a pile of pancakes for lunch or supper.