Bake or Break

Weekly Mix: Baking with Jams, Jellies, and Preserves

Over the last couple of weeks, I baked these lovely Raspberry Coconut Oat Bars and a new favorite Italian Jam Crostata. Both of those are made with some of my favorite shortcut ingredients - jams and preserves. Jams, jellies, and preserves are a great way to bake with a little fruit when you're right in the middle of winter with limited access to fresh berries and other warm weather fruits. Of course, I seem to bake with them year-round! As I looked through my Recipe Index, I realized that preserves and jams and jellies make frequent appearances here on BoB. You know, that might explain the constant overwhelming supply I always seem to have in my refrigerator. So, in light of my addiction realization, I thought I'd share some of my favorite recipes that feature those fruity spreads.

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Oatmeal Jammys

One of the first food trucks I visited in New York was The Treats Truck. I vividly remember taking far too long to order because I couldn't decide what sounded best. That truck, affectionately named Sugar, is still going strong and offers a plethora of tempting cookies, brownies, cupcakes, and many other amazing treats. New to my cookbook collection is The Treats Truck Baking Book. Like Sugar himself, it is also filled with so many good things that it's hard to choose a place to start. After much deliberation, I chose to start with these oatmeal thumbprint cookies. I'm always a sucker for an oatmeal cookie (minus the raisins, of course), and I always have a fully stocked jam/jelly/preserves section of my refrigerator.

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