What is the process used to get syrup and sugar out of cane? I am assuming that you have to press the cane (would the garbage disposal/cider press work on this), and then maybe boil it down for syrup, but how about sugar?

-- Soni (thomkilroy@hotmail.com), March 19, 2002

Answers

Cane is ground in an item known as a griss mill, boiled down and refined repeatly. A garbage disposal would not last long if exposed to cane, its very tough and fiberous.

-- mitch hearn (moopups@citlink.net), March 20, 2002.

the syrup is molasses,, you need a cane press, then boil it down,, one fo the foxfire books explains how to make a horse driven press

-- Stan (sopal@net-port.com), March 20, 2002.

Harvesting sugar cane should happen before frost hits, I've been told if it frosts on the canes, it makes the syrup taste 'off'. The leaves are stripped from the canes in the field, and the canes are cut and hauled to the crushing mill. If you've got birds, toss the seed heads to them, or let them glean in the field after you're done cutting. The 'old' style crushing mill involved a stone base, shaped like a large, upside down, very shallow funnel, with a rim around the outside edge to direct the juices to a spout. The canes were cut to lengths short enough to lay on this stone, and a wide stone wheel, pivoting around the center, would be used to crush the canes. This was usually mule or ox powered, with the critter in question walking in circles all day, so they picked a patient critter. The juice would be caught, and taken to the next stage, the cook-off. A sugaring pan is a huge, flat pan, twin bed sized or larger, that is divided into lots of channels, about as wide as the average outspread hand, I think. It is set over a hollow stone base, with a fire door on one end, and a chimmney on the other. You pour the juice in on the end with the fire door, and draw the syrup out through a spigot at the other end. It will gradually cook down and thicken as it travels back and forth through the channels. Most pioneer folk didn't have that luxury, they cooked the juice down in kettles. Either way, it usually wound up being an all day event, with everyone helping. It makes a fun neighborhood gathering, with everyone taking turns tending and skimming, eating foam, and generally cutting up.

Modern methods? I've not ever seen them shredded. You'd need a VERY tough shredder, these stems are very tough and fibrous. I'd me more inclined to try a chipper/shredder that has never been used for anything else, if I were going to shred. I've not tried it, but it's possible that a laundry wringer might be sturdy enough to do the crushing for a small scale batch, and would collect the juices in the washtub. (Has anyone tried this?) The juice should be strained through muslin, and very slowly cooked down, skimming off the foam as it forms. For sugar, you have to cook all of the water out of the juice, which can be tricky to do without burning your syrup. Most folk just stop at syrup. If you want to try it, get a candy thermometer with heat points marked. Once you've reached hard crack temperature, your sugar will crystalize. Without a thermometer, you test by drizzling a little bit of syrup on a cold metal plate. If it gets crunchy, you're done, pour it out into pie plates and allow it to cool. I've heard hints about how housewives would buy this type of sugar in cones, and use 'sugar nippers' to break it up into managable pieces. They would also 'refine' the raw sugar themselves, to lighten the color and taste. I've yet to track down exactly how they did that step.

Good luck

-- Connie (Connie@lunehaven.com), March 20, 2002.

How much juice does it take for a quart of syrup?

-- MIKE (mburley99@yahoo.com), March 22, 2002.