syrup. When it is finished, it is strained and put in jars. The unique sweetness could be compared to hore- hound candy or root beer.
The amount of juice in the canes varies because it depends on how much it has rained and how much wa- ter is in the canes. Seventy gallons of juice could make about eight gallons of molasses. As Tim and Bryan demonstrate how they head and strip the cane, they look past the treetops. Both boys were raised on the nearby property where their par- ents still live. “Grandpa was born in a log cabin 10 miles from here,
as the crow flies,” Tim says. Their grandpa, Ted, was a farmer and had one of the
few sorghum presses in the area. People brought him their sorghum cane, and in return for using his press, he kept half of the finished product. Ted would make two batches a day, and as a boy, Tony helped grind the first batch before school and helped finish the second batch after he came home. Ted sold the sorghum mo- lasses and traded it for flour or cornmeal. It takes a particular skill to know when to remove the molasses from the heat. Near the end of the cook- ing time, the molasses bubbles up the size of a hog’s eye or bull’s eye. You just have to know when it’s ready by the look and consistency of it, Bryan says. If it’s tak- en off too early, it has the consistency of water, but if it’s cooked too long, it will burn. Tim and Bryan learned that lesson the hard way the
first year they made it, as they took it off the fire 10 or 15 minutes too early. “Grandpa, whadja think?” Tim remembers asking
his grandpa a few days later. Ted, never one to say a bad word against anyone,
simply responded, “‘Well, Timmy, it tasted real good, but you’ll wear yourself out chasin’ it around the plate.’ ”
Timeless tradition
The Stillings family plans to continue the molasses making tradition. Eventually, Tim and Bryan will take the lead from
Tony, and in the meantime, their own children are learning the process. Even though Tony and Linda are in their 70s, their
work ethic can’t be surpassed – their sons offer to help plant the field, but when they get there, it’s already done.
The family is deeply rooted in the community. To- Tim Stillings looks over the family’s sorghum crop.
LIVING WELL JULY/AUGUST 2019 33
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