More than three hundred years after the Coombs family started sugaring, seventh generation maple farmer Arnold Coombs and Coombs Family Farms are still going strong. Coombs Family Farms produces great tasting 100% pure organic maple syrup harvested sustainably from trees nurtured without the use of pesticides.
All Coombs Family Farms maple products are naturally gluten free and made without artificial flavors, preservatives, or thickeners. Their organic maple syrup and organic maple sugar are certified by Quality Assurance International (QAI) and carry the USDA organic seal. They also are certified kosher by Kof K.
As part of a fabric of nearly 8000 maple farmers who are all preserving maple forests and keeping land free from sprawl, Coombs Family Farms is helping to preserve crucial habitat for thousands of distinct plants and animals that need large intact tracts of forest to survive.
I found a wonderful piece by Ellen Kanner in the Huffington post called, “Who Grows Our Food: Arnold Coombs of Coombs Family Farms”, click here to read the article.
The nice folks at Coombs sent me and my Virtual Potluck crew their maple syrup to try. You can find the other bloggers and their reviews and recipes at the round-up page here.
I used the maple syrup on biscuits, pancakes, and waffles for breakfast. I also used it with soy sauce to coat salmon as a marinade, and as a maple glaze on Tripletail fish, fresh from the Gulf of Mexico, that I pan seared.
Maple Glaze for Tripletail:
Ingredients:
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 2-3 T. Dijon mustard
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 T. balsamic vinegar
- 1 t. salt
- ½ t. black pepper
Preparation:
- Whisk ingredients together
- Cover tripletail with glaze, reserving some for serving.
- Refrigerate for 1 hours.
- Heat a large skillet to medium high heat. Add the oil to the pan, and sear each piece of fish on both sides until medium. Brush remaining glaze on before serving.
Ingredients for Tomato & Onion Relish:
- 1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 large tomato, seeded and chopped
- 4 teaspoons red-wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
Preparation:
Soak onion in 1 cup water with 1/2 teaspoon salt 15 minutes, then drain. Stir together onion, tomato, vinegar, sugar, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and let stand 20 minutes. Drain relish in a sieve, discarding liquid, then stir in dill.
Ingredients for Mushroom Broth:
1/2 pound of oyster, porcini or favorite mushrooms
1 teaspoon of duck fat or butter
1 shallot
1 quart of light chicken stock no msg, no sodium
1 bouquet of parsley, chervil and chives
1/2 teaspoon of coriander seeds
salt and pepper to taste
Clean the mushrooms removing the dirt and debris,carefully cleaning. Once they are clean, press them dry in a clean kitchen linen. Trim and wipe off the mushrooms.Heat the teaspoon of fat over high heat in a non-stick pan, and throw the mushrooms in. Do not crowd the mushrooms or stir.When you have evaporated the moisture they initially release, turn the heat to medium and add the minced shallot and the mild bouquet. Stir for a few minutes, and then top this with light poultry stock or water, and the coriander seeds. Lower the heat this time to low and simmer at barely a murmer for 20 minutes. At the end of that time, remove the pan from the heat, and let cool without removing the contents. Strain off the solid contents
Serving:
Place a grit cake, cheese grits, rice, orzo, or your favorite pasta as a bed for the fish in the bottom of the serving dish. Pour the mushroom broth around the chosen base. Place the fish on top of the base and the tomato relish on top of the fish. Garnish with green onion.
The syrup had great maple flavor, however, the consistency was a little thinner than store bought imitation maple syrup. Then again, there are no artificial thickeners in it!
The superior quality and rich, sweet flavor of Coomb’s pure organic maple is unique – and entirely delicious.
I could appreciate the labor of love that went into creating this product.
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