We’re proper on the cusp of berry season, and meaning jam. I’ve made my very own freezer jam yearly for the final 15 years or so, ever since I noticed I may use strawberry Jell-O instead of pectin (and, ahem, strawberries) to make strawberry-rhubarb jam.
I turned obsessive about utilizing flavored gelatin to make jam and tried it in each mixture I may consider: raspberry Jell-O for raspberry or blackberry jam; “berry blue” Jell-O for blueberry jam; peach Jell-O for peach or apricot jam; and orange Jell-O for orange marmalade. Typically I’d combine totally different flavors simply to see what would occur, like strawberry and peach.
I’m right here to let you know that no mixture was unhealthy. The Jell-O factor isn’t essentially pronounced, but it surely does, I believe, strengthen the flavour and deepen the colour (on account, little doubt, of the dreadful synthetic coloring).
I’m not suggesting that it’s best to make freezer jam with Jell-O. Nutritionally talking, pectin is unquestionably the more healthy selection, particularly contemplating no matter heinous dye goes into “berry blue” Jell-O. However I’m saying that I’ve plenty of jam in my freezer made with Jell-O and I hate to see it go to waste.
We simply don’t eat as a lot jam as we used to when my daughter was dwelling. My husband doesn’t dislike jam, however there’s a complete record of issues he prefers to jam with regards to toast toppings, similar to honey, lemon curd, Nutella or Marmite. (That’s a British unfold produced from yeast extract and vegetable juice. It’s very salty and appears like gooey grasshopper spit.)
The recipe seemed comparatively easy to me — simply cookie dough and jam with a little bit of icing — and I assumed I may do away with at the very least half a jar of blackberry jam. (Which taste Jell-O I used to make the jam is now misplaced to reminiscence.) Ultimately, I used the entire 12-ounce jar. That’s greater than the recipe referred to as for, however I definitely achieved my jam-deployment mission.
After all, I encountered some challenges and dealt with them in my common what-the-heck-is-she-doing fashion. The recipe referred to as for a half-cup of Karo syrup, and I used to be fairly certain I had some within the pantry.
Effectively, I did have some, but it surely was extraordinarily classic and virtually strong, about one-eighth cup within the backside of a plastic bottle. I used a field cutter and wire clipper to open the bottle and spooned out what I may. I vehemently advise towards doing something I simply talked about within the final sentence due to: a) potential blood loss as a result of unintended contact with a pointy object, and b) releasing a bathe of microplastic particles into your batter. I made up the remainder of the half-cup with honey and maple syrup.
The recipe doesn’t make very a lot batter, so it’s vital to make use of a small, 7-by-11-inch pan. You unfold half the batter, which is quite thick, into the underside of a buttered baking dish. It makes a really skinny layer, however that’s positive. Unfold the jam over that, after which dollop the remaining batter on high in little drops. That final half is form of enjoyable, like making a snazzy leopard-print sample in your cookies.
Stephens’ recipe says to frost the cookies with a skinny layer of powdered sugar icing whereas the cookies are nonetheless heat. She should have assumed that most individuals studying the recipe can be competent cooks and know the right way to make a powdered sugar icing, however alas, I’m not a kind of folks, and I needed to look it up.
The icing recipe I used requires 1 cup of powdered sugar plus 2 tablespoons of milk or fruit juice, plus half a teaspoon vanilla. I turned intrigued by the thought of blending fruit juice into my icing. I occurred to have some coconut-pineapple juice within the fridge, so I used that, and it gave the icing a pleasant little tang. I additionally waited till the cookies had cooled a bit earlier than drizzling the icing over them, as I didn’t need it to soften and destroy the drizzle sample.
The bars are implausible. The shortbread is delicate however holds collectively and comes out of the pan simply. There’s simply the proper ratio of dough to jam. It’s like a fruit cobbler in cookie kind. You may eat it with a fork or use your palms, however be ready to lick jam off your fingers. The bars are candy however not too candy, and you may alter the sweetness by making use of kind of icing drizzle to your style; I ended up not utilizing all of it.
I can positively advocate utilizing fruit juice as an alternative of milk, if you’d like somewhat additional zing. Lastly (and it is a plus for our household of two), the recipe doesn’t end in 3,000 cookies. I obtained 16 sensibly sized bars out of 1 pan, which is a lot to get pleasure from and share.
Thanks, Pat Stephens, for this marvelous recipe. These candy little bars are simply the ticket, and I’m delighted to report that I didn’t destroy them through the use of honey and maple syrup as an alternative of Karo syrup. Better of all, the recipe is simple sufficient that, properly, even I could make it.
Pat Stephens’ Frosted Jam Bars
½ cup melted butter or margarine
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 overwhelmed egg
½ teaspoon vanilla
1½ cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¾ cup jam
Icing:
1 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons milk, plant milk or fruit juice
½ teaspoon vanilla
Stir corn syrup into butter with the egg and vanilla. Sift collectively flour, baking powder and cinnamon and add to moist elements. Combine till mixed. Unfold half the batter in a greased 7-by-11-inch pan. Unfold ¾ cup jam on high. Dot with remaining batter. Bake 20 minutes at 400 levels (or 375 levels if utilizing a glass pan). Cool barely, then drizzle with a skinny layer of powdered sugar frosting. Lower into bars when utterly cool.
