Mindfulness from a Maple, part 3

This spring, I blogged about our family collecting sap (lots!) from our maple to create syrup. Now that it's summer, I've found a way to put the syrup to great use--homemade maple ice cream!

I played with the Maple Walnut recipe from "The Best Ice Cream Maker Cookbook Ever" by Peggy Fallon and came up with the following:

Homemade Maple Ice Cream (serves 4-6)

1 cup heavy cream
1 cup half and half
1/2 cup pure maple syrup (I used the darker syrup that gets collected in later spring and saved the excellent lighter syrup for pancakes and such)
1 tsp vanilla extract
dash salt
optional: 1/2 cup (toasted pecans or walnuts)

Serve it immediately after freezing for best consistency.

Whisk it together and freeze it up in an ice cream maker (following maker directions). Place the soft scoops into serving bowls and for those who like nuts, sprinkle toasted pecans or walnuts on top.

Harvesting and patiently boiling down the syrup gave our family a deeper awareness and appreciation for our connection to nature and our food. Churning the syrup into ice cream takes us even deeper as we anxiously wait for it to freeze and then savor the subtle flavor in every spoonful.

In what ways do you deepen your connections to nature and/or food?