Jacquie's fig jam and spiced nuts recipes

Sometimes it’s the little things that send our customers over the moon and back for more. One of our customer favorites is also a holiday favorite of ours, Jacquie’s own fig jam.

Fig jam is actually pretty easy to prepare and makes an out-of-the-ordinary holiday housewarming gift, especially when paired with another of our favorites, spiced nuts.

Jacquie’s Gourmet Catering Holiday Fig Jam

You’ll need 5 pounds of high quality figs, which you can usually purchase at a market specializing in high quality produce.

• Pour boiling water over 5 pounds of figs, and drain after 10 minutes.
• As figs cool, remove the stems and use a food processor to chop the figs.
• Add 3/4 cup of water and 6 cups of sugar to the mixture and stir
• Bring the mixture slowly to a boil over medium high heat until the juice thickens and the sugar melts.
• Set the pot aside to add the juice of 2 round firm fresh lemons (approximately¼ cup)
• Place pan back on the stove over medium heat and cook for one additional minute.
• Pour the mixture into sterilized jars, allowing 1/4-inch headspace.
• Process the jars for five minutes in a boiling water canner.

Jacquie’s Gourmet Catering Spiced Nuts

Another holiday favorite, Spiced Nuts are another easy to prepare holiday gift that everyone likes to receive.

You will need:

• ½ c unsalted butter
• 4 cups pecans
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground allspice
• ½ teaspoon ground cloves
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder

Melt butter in a 2-quart microwave safe pan and stir in the nuts.

Add Worcestershire, soy sauce, salt, cinnamon, allspice, cloves and garlic powder; mix well.

Microwave on high for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring every 3 minutes.

Let mixture cool to room temperature and store in tightly sealed gift containers.

Jacquie enjoys giving gifts of fig jam together with high end crackers or homemade bread.

Another hint from Jacquie: Homemade spiced nuts look divine when presented in a decorative box, inset with a paper doily and presented with a lovely red wine or spiced white wine such as Gewurztraminer.