My friend Theresa is the Co-Executive Producer of Growing A Greener World, a fantastic TV show about all things gardening. She’s also a wicked good urban homesteader, master canner, great writer (check out her personal blog), and a super nice person.
Theresa knows I have a soft spot for combining jam with booze (strawberry jam margarita, anyone?), so when she asked me to participate in a Virtual “Jamtini” Cocktail Party, my answer was, “Pass the ice, pass the shaker! Let’s do this!”
Right now in the Pacific Northwest the juicy Asian Plums are coming on strong and the fleshier, European types are right behind them. With three plum trees in my yard, I put up a lot of plum jam, plum chutney and plum sauce every year. This year, some of that plum jam is going into this amazing Spiced Plum Jamtini Cocktail Theresa developed.
Spiced Plum Jamtini – A Jam Cocktail
You Will Need:
- 6 whole cloves
- 1 oz. pomegranate-cherry juice
- 1 oz. simple syrup (see note)
- 2 oz. vodka
- 2 heaping spoonfuls plum jam
- Ice
- A ½ pint jam jar (as your serving glass)
- Club soda
- A slice of a plum as garnish (optional)
- Basil blossom as garnish (optional)
Method
In a cocktail shaker, muddle the cloves. Add the juice, simple syrup, vodka, jam and some ice. Put the lid onto the shaker and shake. Shake some more! (You need to distribute the jam.)
Add some ice to a clean jam jar or small glass and strain in the cocktail. (Discard solids in the shaker.) Top off with a splash of club soda if you wish. Garnish with the plum slice and basil. Serve.
Note: Simple syrup is just a boiled solution made of equal parts water and sugar. It needs to be made ahead of time and allowed to cool before using. In a small saucepan, combine at least 1 cup water and 1 cup sugar. Bring to a boil to dissolve the sugar, stirring occasionally. Turn off the heat and let mixture cool completely before making cocktails.
Jamtini In Action
If you are more of a visual learner, you can watch Theresa’s Jamtini creation method below. She’s demonstrating with a Strawberry Jamtini.
Raise a Glass With Friends!
Tonight, invite your friends and neighbors over – raid the pantry and the liquor cabinet. Growing A Greener World has all the info you need to create your own Jamtini recipe (see: Easy Jam Cocktail Recipes).
Plus check out my friends-in-virtual-cocktailing for more great Jamtini ideas.
The Kitchn – sipping on a Lemon Raspberry Jamtini with lemon verbena and fresh raspberries.
Food in Jars – kicking back with a Blackberry Jamtini that captures the flavor of summer with a twist of lemonade.
Learn to Preserve – letting her hair down with a Pear/Pineapple Jamtini with a kick of fresh ginger.
Now it’s your turn – join the party and share how you use your garden produce, herbs and preserves in refreshing drinks, without or without the booze. Everything from cocktails to teas, shrubs, juices and more make refreshing fresh-from-the-garden libations. What’s your favorite?
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You know, I’ve never thought to use jam in a cocktail before! Now I wish I’d spent the summer making a bunch of jam. 🙂 Oh well–there’s still time!
Genius! I’ve never even heard of a jamtini! Who knew? I have shelves full of jam to use and I think this just might be my new favorite way of using it!
Hi Rhonda –
When we were trying to come up for name for this one, my mom said, “How fun. A martini with Jam…A Jamtini”. We thought it was a winner of a name. LOL
So even with all the sweetener in the jam, you still need to add simple syrup? Wow! lotsa sugar…
I’d experiment…probably depends on your jam. Personally I like my cocktails pretty tart, but that’s certainly not the norm.
Yes Allen,
This is a sweet drink. But no sweeter than a Lemon Drop Martini or Strawberry Daiquiri (which are also very high sugar). However, the beauty of this recipe is that you can change the juice and get very different flavors. In the Plum Jamtini recipe above, the Pomegranate is a little bitter. So, the simple syrup counters that and it has a nice balance. The Strawberry is more like a Daiquiri in sweetness.
You may have already tried this but if you haven’t you might try adding strawberry jam to ice cold chardonnay. I make freezer jam so the berries taste better. It makes an awesome summer wine cooler.
Oh, I am SO going to try this! Thanks for the tip with Chardonnay.
I have chickasaw/wild plums on the property and access to more of the same on an unclaimed bit of property nearby. Last year it was salted plums done umeboshi style and this year I thought I’d add umeshu to the list, except that’ll take a year before it’s ready… looks like I’m going to have to make extra plum butter.
i made rubarb simple syrup this year. The cool thing is after u have cooked the rubarb in water and sugar u strain out the liquid for the syrup and u have rubarb butter left over, going to make rubarb weat beer jam with that. I made rubarb mojiotos with the syrup and put it on waffles, but i would think there would b lots of other drinks you could make with it. Going to make mint simple syrup to and freeze some of it for deserts and coctails this winter.I have a recipe for smoked apple butter manhatan i just didnt get arround to smoking apples for the apple butter but my wife got me a smoker at a thrift shop so i need to give that a try this fall.
Well G,
You will be happy to know that we made a little video on making Rhubarb Syrup too! It will be released in a few weeks. (We have one video a week coming out over the next 12 week.) I use Rhubarb Syrup for sweet tea and for drizzling over fruit or cake or homemade ice cream…or, well you get the picture! And it makes the BEST Jamtini of all when combined with Strawberry Jam.
i made elderflower syrup and fennel frond syrup to i forgot about those. the fennel is good if you put just a splash of it in a vinegret to take the edge off the acid but i havent figured any other uses for it just yet. I tend to experiment with things when i have an excessive ammount. I hate throwing food away. So i tried pickleing fennel stems that is a bust, my son likes to just chew on them so that works to but I found if i steep them cut up with fronds and some toasted star anise then make that into syrup it tastes less vegital.
WOW! That is very clever.
I’m wondering if you could use that fennel syrup to make a bit of a Scrub-type drink? Perhaps just a splash with some fruit juice? Too much would overpower, but make just a small spoonful would add a little zing. It sounds fun to experiment with.
As for Elderflower syrup, my mom just sent me an article from Acres magazine that talks about the immune-boosting punch of elderflower. I was thinking that a syrup from that would be a ‘sweet’ way to get that punch. I bet it is heavenly!
Food & Wine did a piece last summer on jam cocktails and it has been a winner here ever since! (basic recipe: 2 oz spirits -vodka; gin; tequila; whatever; 1 oz citrus juice (lemon, lime, whatever); 1 oz simple syrup; 1 Tablespoon jam. Shake in a cocktail shaker with crushed ice. Strain. Add club soda and/or herbs to garnish (both optional)). Having said all that, I like to make candied ginger, so use the resulting ginger syrup as a base instead of the simple syrup and always add club soda as it is really sweet (it is a sweeter cousin to the simple syrup — almost an invert sugar syrup). So, some nice tequila, ginger syrup and peach jam, garnished with basil or mint and I’m a very happy girl! Give it a try!
I did not see the Food & Wine piece but will look for it. That is almost the same formula as for the Jamtini, except I use fruit juices instead of just citrus and I like to muddle herbs/spices in there with it.
I love the idea of ginger syrup. I have not tried that. But I do sometimes put a slice of ginger in the shaker (especially for peach or pear jamtinis) and it gives a nice ZING to the mix.
We have been making kombuchashine lately. I imagine it may be the first time that the wondrously fermented beverage has been combined with moonshine, but they work well together. Add a bit of mint and it is heaven!
Whoa – Kombuchashine? That is a new one to me. It sounds like heaven!
Just made this and love it. Pushed me to make a last batch of plum jam now that I have such a fun use for it! Thanks.