As sad as it seems, summer has officially come to an end and while I know I’ll sure miss the warm and lazy days in the backyard, autumn does have its own appeal as well. And the hearty, comforting foods of the season are definitely a big part of autumn to me!
I love showing off the season’s delicious foods by inviting friends and family for a meal but, while I enjoy entertaining, I don’t want to spend all my time cooking either! Quick and easy recipes are a stand-by for me and so I recently set out to create some tasty fall recipes using jam that cook in less than 15 minutes and contain five ingredients or fewer.
Blueberry Brie Tarts
These simple appetizers have a gourmet taste and a rich flavour that guests will love. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and place one package of 18 frozen tart shells on a cookie sheet. Fill each tart shell with three ½-inch cubes of Brie cheese. Bake for ten minutes, until cheese is melted. Top each tart with ½ teaspoon of Blueberry Jam and bake 2-3 minutes more, until jam is bubbly. Serve immediately.
Orange Raspberry Chicken Wraps with Kale
This wrap makes a great simple lunch when you still want to impress your guests. Sauté one package of fully cooked chicken breast strips with ¼ cup of Orange Marmalade over medium heat until chicken is hot. Spoon chicken evenly into four whole-grain wraps and top with torn kale and fresh raspberries. Roll up wraps, cut in half and serve.
Apricot Curried Carrots
A perfect warming side dish for chilly fall weather! Bring a small pot of water to a boil and add 1 cup of chopped fresh carrots. Boil for about five to ten minutes, until carrots are tender. Drain water and add 1 tsp. butter, 1 tsp. curry powder and 1 tbsp. Apricot Jam. Mix well until butter melts and carrots are glazed.
Easy Spicy Peach Compote
Peel and chop four fresh peaches. Place in heavy saucepan with ½ cup Peach Jam, 2 tsp. cinnamon and 1 tsp. nutmeg. Simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until compote is thick, about ten minutes. Let cool slightly and serve over ice cream or pancakes. Refrigerate leftovers.
These pairings were all popular ones but the Blueberry Brie Tarts were my personal favourite. The rich creamy Brie cheese pairs so perfectly with the sweet blueberry jam. The Easy Spicy Peach Compote was a huge hit as well, though. The blend of sweet fruit and spice was the perfect addition to a scoop of vanilla ice cream!
But the best part was that while all four dishes looked and tasted like gourmet creations, they were all so easy to prepare! Creating recipes using jam added both sweetness and complexity to each dish, so that even a minimal amount of ingredients resulted in pairings that had a fabulous flavour. When I can spend less time cooking and more time socializing—while still leaving my guests impressed by the meal—that’s fall entertaining at its finest for me!
Soozle says
September 30, 2014 at 5:21 amOh wow! I can’t believe how easy these recipes are.. I love the blueberry tart idea; for 3 ingredients, it sounds amazing 🙂 Thanks for sharing
Lori JB says
September 30, 2014 at 1:39 pmThese look delicious. The fact that they are so easy to make is a huge bonus!
Linda Geertsma says
October 1, 2014 at 1:57 pmthese are so delicious looking and look easy to make… thank you..
aarone mawdsley says
October 1, 2014 at 1:58 pmYum the tarts look yummy!
Nicole g says
October 1, 2014 at 2:01 pmLooks so good!!
Lynn D. says
October 1, 2014 at 2:53 pmOrange Raspberry chicken wraps with Kale! going to try these!!!
Wanda Tracey says
October 1, 2014 at 2:54 pmThey look great!! I think blueberry lovers like me will really enjoy them.Thanks for the recipe.I will try them at thanksgiving.
kathy downey says
October 1, 2014 at 4:47 pmThese look delicious and now that fall is here will be cooking everyday
Dawn Rader says
October 1, 2014 at 6:34 pmomg these look yummy! thanks for sharing! some of these look so easy
Gene says
October 1, 2014 at 7:40 pmLike they say…with a name like Smuckers..its gotta be good
Doris Calvert says
October 1, 2014 at 7:58 pmI would never think to put jam with cooking! The tarts look amazing! I do put Smuckers on ice cream for sundae’s and it’s so good.
Heidi C. says
October 1, 2014 at 11:35 pmThese sound like some very yummy taste pairings!
Jodi Mitrovic says
October 2, 2014 at 7:57 amOur family loves Smuckers! Great recipes especially Chicken Wraps with Kale!
Cheryl says
October 2, 2014 at 8:35 amThey all look yummy!!
DARLENE W says
October 2, 2014 at 9:49 amLove the tarts, my Mom still makes these on a weekly basis
Deanna Barkley says
October 2, 2014 at 1:06 pmThe recipes look easy and delicious. I especially like the apricot curried carrots and the Orange Raspberry Chicken Wraps with Kale.
Treen Goodwin says
October 2, 2014 at 1:17 pmEverything looks so delish , and the recipes are super easy thanks for sharing 🙂
Lynda Cook says
October 2, 2014 at 2:23 pmOH wow!! yummy, I am going to make the Brie tarts and eat them all myself..lol..just joking, but they look so good and so does everything else, yummmm
GARRY S says
October 2, 2014 at 5:29 pmLOVE TO TRY APRICOT CURRIED CARROTS
Anna W says
October 3, 2014 at 7:29 amNever thought to use Smuckers in so many ways, it is the only brand we buy.
Karla Sceviour says
October 3, 2014 at 6:09 pmohhh,those Apricot carrots sounds delish!!
SueSueper says
October 3, 2014 at 7:08 pmNever thought to use Smucker’s Orange Marmalade with chicken. Need to try it.
Athena says
October 4, 2014 at 8:28 amThese look really good
Claudette lariviere says
October 4, 2014 at 12:20 pmThe blueberry Brie tarts look delicious!
Shirley OFlynn says
October 4, 2014 at 2:22 pmLooks so yummy!
dodi says
October 4, 2014 at 6:47 pmLuv it here…everything is great!!
Jess H says
October 5, 2014 at 4:34 pmThe blueberry tarts looks delicious!
Stephanie LaPlante says
October 6, 2014 at 5:42 pmI’d love to try the Easy Spicy Peach Compote
Teresa Claire says
October 6, 2014 at 7:04 pmAll of these recipes look wonderful. I love carrots so I will give this one a try first.
Victoria Ess says
October 10, 2014 at 9:45 amInteresting food ideas! I have never even considered cooking with jam, much less tried it.
Florence C says
October 11, 2014 at 6:51 amTakes for sharing. I will be trying the Apricot Curried Carrots.
Anna Johnson says
October 12, 2014 at 9:09 pmGreat ideas that look delicious! I’m sure they will go over well-thank you!
Angela Mitchell says
October 13, 2014 at 12:37 amI’m going to have to try and make those Blueberry Brie tart!
loriag says
October 14, 2014 at 6:38 amThose blueberry tarts look so good. The only thing I might change is adding fresh blueberries before the jam.
Judy Cowan says
October 16, 2014 at 8:32 amThey all look great but I am definitely going to have to try out the Blueberry Brie Tarts!
Jody D says
October 16, 2014 at 4:14 pmLove the mini brie tarts idea! Great appie! thanks
Doris H says
October 21, 2014 at 7:42 amThe recipes look easy to make…I have to try them!
Erika Belanger says
October 21, 2014 at 8:34 amOmg these all look so yummy. I thought I liked the Blueberry Brie tarts the best until I seen the Orange Raspberry Chicken Wraps with Kale, Awesome recipes!!! That is what I love most this time of year!!
MrDisco says
October 21, 2014 at 7:10 pmyum
Jeannie says
October 21, 2014 at 8:13 pmThe blueberry brie tart looks amazing.
Rosanne Robinson says
December 20, 2014 at 7:02 amWow, so easy to make and they taste as great as they look!
Kiersten says
December 25, 2014 at 9:16 pmso easy, and looks delicious!
Katie Heath says
February 10, 2015 at 6:35 pmmmm these all look so good! especially the peach compote!
Micheline says
May 16, 2019 at 3:41 pmThe Easy Spicy Peach Compote looks to good!
kathy downey says
May 17, 2019 at 10:16 amYou got my attention at Orange Raspberry Chicken Wraps with Kale,sounds amazing!