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You know how The Goddess loves her sauce. This one is a passion. It’s simplicity itself to make. It’s spectacularly flexible and it’s extraordinarily delicious. I’m thinking this will be and incredible glaze for our Thanksgiving turkey. I’d like to tell you this came to The Goddess in a vision, but her visions are a bit hazy these days…she may need glasses. Sometimes the culinary Gods smile. You see, the partially filled French press was sitting on the counter next to the maple syrup. She was chopping onions and the knife kept bumping into the maple syrup bottle. As she went to move the bottle, a light bulb went off. There were voices from heaven. The planets aligned perfectly. She got out her heavy-bottomed pan and poured in the coffee. She was about to pour in some of the maple syrup, but she remembered that she had some maple sugar that had fused into a rock-like lump. Maple sugar is wonderful, but it can do that. 
So she plopped the “rock” into the coffee (see it there, lurking beneath the surface—like the Loch Ness monster of sauce making!), let it sit for about 5 minutes, until the maple sugar dissolved enough to start cooking. She turned on the flame and begin to reduce the mixture. You’re going to have to go by sight on this one. 
At first the bubbles around the edge are tiny, then they grow and become larger and the mixture will be thicker. Remember, the elixir thickens as it cools. Now, I do add a few drops of maple flavoring or extract. The reason? I want to taste the maple and maple mixed with coffee, is not going to be maple-y enough. That’s it! Easy, right? Tasty? Definitely.
And as you know, The Goddess, can’t leave anything alone. So she has begun to experiment. But, that’s for another time.
Espresso-Maple Glaze
- 2 cups espresso or very strong coffee (do not use instant espresso-it’s nasty)
- 1 cup maple syrup or maple sugar
- 3-4 drops maple flavor or extract
- Large pinch kosher salt
Pour the coffee and maple syrup into a heavy-bottomed sauce pan. Heat over high heat until the mixture boil. Lower the heat to medium and continue to cook, stirring occasionally until the mixture thickens. The bubbles will be quite large when it’s reached the proper thickness. Cool to room temperature. Pour into a jar with a tight-fitting lid; refrigerate. This will keep almost indefinitely, but you’ll use it up quickly. Excellent drizzled on roasted/sautéed vegetables, brushed on burgers, steaks and grilled pork, great on roasted or fried sweet potatoes…the sky, is truly the limit!
Espresso-Maple Glaze Recipe©Marcia Lahens 2016. All rights reserved.
I drizzle this over burgers. I drizzle this around a steak, so you can “dip” each lovely bit into some of the glaze. I drizzle this on sautéed greens, like Kale with Strawberries and on Bacon-Wrapped Ripe Plantains. And, drizzle over ice cream with some hot fudge. There are really very few things this exquisite elixir won’t improve. I’m thinking this will be a great glaze for both the Thanksgiving turkey and the Easter ham. What are you going to do with it?
Goddess Cooks 