Jam It Out, Butter It Up & Get Sauced

You may have read it on the website or heard me say it in person - jam isn't just for toast, butter isn't just for biscuits and there is more than one way to get sauced!

When I'm diving into cookbooks while tuning in to the almighty Food Network, surfing through REELS, and absorbing inspiration for new recipes, I'm also on a mission to elevate jam beyond just jam and butter beyond a mundane breakfast spread. I've jazzed up some dull dishes with jams, jellies, butters, and sauces, and it's high time I pass some secrets on to you.

The recipes you'll find below are a mix of contributions from friends, discoveries from the vast interwebs, and my own spontaneous creations.

I hope you can also find new ways to rock out with all things Eggie Lope's, and I'm always open to hearing just how YOU jam it out, butter it up and get sauced... always responsibly, by recycling your jars of course.

Love & light.

ALMOND TEA CAKES

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 cup almond flour (almond meal) or ground blanched almonds

• 2/3 cup granulated sugar

• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

• 1/4teaspoon salt

• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened

• 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

• 1/2 cup jam, room temperature, stirred

• powdered sugar for dusting

• 48 mini muffin paper baking cups

  
  

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 24 mini muffin tin with baking cups. Alternatively, line a baking sheet with the mini muffins cups spaced 2-inches apart.

• In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the flour, almond meal, sugar, baking powder and salt until blended. Add the butter, vanilla and almond extract. Pulse until the mixture becomes a soft dough.

• Using a small cookie scoop (flat - not heaping) roll balls of cookie dough into tight balls. With the cookie dough ball cupped in one hand, make an indentation with the pinky finger from the opposite hand into the center of the ball. Make the well half the depth of the dough ball, then place it in the baking cup, with the hole facing up. If the dough ball starts to crack or split, re-roll until it’s smooth, tight and pliable. Continue until the mini-muffin tin is full. Fill each cookie with a heaping ¼ teaspoon of blueberry lime jam. The jam should completely fill the indentation and be somewhat overfilled.

• Bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until lightly browned on the edges. Do not over bake! Allow the cookies to rest in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool. Once cooled, dust with powdered sugar. Store at room temperature in an airtight container. Cookies will keep for up to 5 days.

  
  

HAND PIES

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

• 2 tablespoons sugar

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 cup unsalted butter

• 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon cold buttermilk

  
  

FOR THE FILLING AND TOPPING

• 1 jar of Jam

• 1 large egg, beaten for egg wash

• granulated sugar, for topping

Instructions

• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar and salt. Add cold, cubed butter and, using your fingers, work the butter into the flour mixture. Quickly break the butter down into the flour mixture. Some butter pieces will be the size of oat flakes; some will be the size of peas. Create a well in the mixture and pour in the cold buttermilk. Use a fork to bring the dough together. Try to moisten all of the flour bits. On a lightly floured work surface, dump out the dough mixture. It will be moist and shaggy. That’s perfect. Divide the dough in two and gently knead into two disks. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. Allowing the dough to rest in the refrigerator will help rechill the butter and distribute the moisture.

• On a well-floured surface, roll one of the disks out to a 1/8?-thickness. Use a 3-inch round cookie cutter to cut about 10 to 12 circles out of the rolled crust. Place the circles on a plate and place in the refrigerator while you roll out and cut circles from of the second pie crust disk.

• You can re-roll the scraps of pie crust if you’d like. The more you work the crust the tougher it will become, but that’s ok for about two rerolls.

• Place a rack in the center and upper third of the oven and preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

• Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

• To fill the pies, remove the rounds from the refrigerator and working a few at a time, place about 1 teaspoon of jam into the center of each circle. Lightly brush the edge of one side of the crust with egg wash. Fold the crust over. Press gently to seal the jam inside the crust, and use the tines of a fork to press the edges together, sealing well.

• Use a small knife to cut a few vent slits in the top of each semi-circle. Place on the prepared baking sheets about 1-inch apart.

• Repeat with all of the crust circles. Refrigerate for 30 minutes if your dough has warmed substantially. At this stage you can also freeze the pies on the baking sheet until frozen through, about 2 hours. Once frozen through place in an airtight bag and store in the freezer for up to 1 month. Pies can be egg washed and baked from the freezer by adding about 7 minutes to the baking time.

• Brush the tops of the pies lightly with egg was and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes until golden brown and bubbling.

• Remove from the oven. Place on a wire baking sheet to cool completely.

CLASSIC SCONES AND JAM

Ingredients

• 2 cups cake flour, more as needed

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 2 teaspoons baking powder

• 3 tablespoons sugar

• 5 tablespoons cold butter, cut into pieces

• 1 egg

• 1/2 to 3/4 cup heavy cream, more for brushing

Instructions

• Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Put the flour, salt, baking powder and 2 tablespoons of the sugar in a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles cornmeal.

• Add the egg and just enough cream to form a slightly sticky dough. If it’s too sticky, add a little flour, but very little; it should still stick a little to your hands.

• Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead once or twice, then press it into a ¾-inch-thick circle and cut into 2-inch rounds with a biscuit cutter or glass. Put the rounds on an ungreased baking sheet. Gently reshape the leftover dough and cut again. Brush the top of each scone with a bit of cream and sprinkle with a little of the remaining sugar.

• Bake for 9 to 11 minutes, or until the scones are a beautiful golden brown. Slice, fill with jam and serve!

  
  

p.s. If you want to get real fancy, serve up with marscapone cheese AND JAM!

FELLOW JAMMERS (AND YOURS TRULY) ARE ALSO REPORTING THE FOLLOWING:

"MILKSHAKES! We add jams to our morning shakes!"

"We add Eggy Lope's to our yogurt and oatmeal in the morning. It REALLY adds a much-needed punch to all things plain!"

"Soaked our pound cake in peach syrup. HOLY COW!!!"

"That Habanero Carrot Butter! CHICKEN! PUT IT ON CHICKEN! Oh, and tacos. We've also been caught taking it into our local Mexican restaurant. HA!"

"Pork + Peach Jam = HEAVEN."

"Plum Tangy.... IT IS TANGY!!! I wasn't sure at first, but after the suggestion (per Eggie) to serve alongside duck, I had to give it a try. WOW! Spot on. I imagine this would also be great with quail. Don't underestimate the power of Plum Tangy!"

"A spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down," they say. Well, why not add some delicious jam or jelly? I take a daily pill that dissolves very quickly and sometimes gets stuck going down. A sweet way to definitely make the medicine go down easier! Oh yeah, and we did use it for our dog's medication a few times. Win all around!"

"We scoop out cupcakes, fill with jam and cover the 'hole' with fresh fruit. What a win!"

"Just GOOGLE things like BAKED BRIE... endless ideas!"

SALAD DRESSING/VINAIGRETTE

Ingredients

• 1 used jar Jam, such as strawberry (about 1-2 Tablespoons)

• Pinch Salt, Cracked Pepper, Red Pepper Flakes

• 1⁄2 cup Oil, such as extra virgin olive oil

• 1⁄4 cup Vinegar, such as champagne or apple cider

  
  

Instructions

• Grab a jam jar that has at least a spoon or two’s worth left in the bottom.

• Add your pinches of seasoning and top with oil and vinegar.

• Close the lid securely and shake until well combined and smooth.

• Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator until needed. Make sure to shake thoroughly before serving! The more you shake, the thicker and more creamy your dressing will become.

GRAND FINALE - COCKTAILS!

"Two shots of bourbon, 6oz sprite & a tbsp of plum tangy, shaken and served over ice - it was strong & good!"