One day, I read the ingredients on a bottle of "maple" syrup. Holy Cow! No wonder my kids were so crazed after pancakes! But the high fructose corn syrup and sugar aren't the worst parts. The preservatives alone are enough to terrify you. So we started buying up fruit at the store, or better yet, the local farmers market, and canning our own syrups. This is not as complicated as it sounds! If you haven't canned before, have no fear, it's easy. The syrup has a fantastic fresh flavor, and at least you know what's in it! (fruit, sugar, and some pectin, if you choose) Plus, to avoid the artificial flavors of koolaid, I squeeze 4 limes (at 10 cents each) into a gallon of water, add some of our syrup (pineapple at the moment and practically free), add a little sugar if it's too tart, some salt if it's hot out, and you have a great replacement for gatoraid or koolaid.

Syrup can also be served over ice cream, on snow cones, etc. And as I mentioned in a previous post, you can always mix some of the syrup with applesauce and serve it to cut down on the sugar further.

By Gina J. from Colorado

Editor's Note: Gina must be referring to "maple" flavored pancake syrup rather than 100% pure maple syrup, which should have no additives at all.

By Gina J.