Memories of maple

When I was a kid, maple syrup was called "real" syrup and the table syrup (the stuff my sister liked) was called the "fake" syrup.

To this day, I can't imagine anyone prefering table syrup over maple syrup. The only real benefit is that table syrup is usually thicker and has a more satisfying mouth feel than that maple syrup. However, the flavours don't compare.

One of my dad's tricks for using up leftover ham was to fry it up in a cast iron pan with some of the "real" stuff until the syrup caramelized and the ham  was left with this sticky coating. The only problem was that sometimes the syrup turned dark before the flavour had a chance to permeate the ham, which left some delicious pieces of ham and others not so good as the syrup didn't coat them equally.

In this simple recipe, I've taken that concept and improved on it. With a little patience, this maple candied ham is a treat to top salads or maybe even cupcakes, given the current bacon craze in the world of sweets.

I tossed it in with some mesclun mix, gorgonzola cheese, pears and a homemade maple-balsamic and mustard dressing. Wow, was that whole lot of deliciousness!

Here's what you do do.

Maple candied hamMaple Candied Ham

Take

1/2 pound of ham (the stuff off the bone, don't try this with cold cuts for the love of God!)

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup water

Dash of tabasco sauce (optional)

Cut up the ham into batonnets (about 1/4 inch wide by 1 inch long). Heat a non-stick pan to medium, add ham, maple syrup, water and tabasco, stir to combine well.

As the water evaporates, continue to stir. You'll notice that the pan will start to get sticky. Be patient. Continue to stir until maple syrup darkens to a dark caramel colour, and completely coats the ham.

When it is sticky and dark, remove from pan quickly as it can burn in mere second. Let cool before eating! Enjoy.