When Christopher Kimball of America’s Test Kitchen tells an aide de camp to go ahead and spend the extra $5 to upgrade from Le Bonne Maman to America Spoon jam, do you not run right over to fire up the computer and obey?
Of course you do.
Even though in real life you’d never think of spending as much as $4 to $5 for Le Bonne Maman preserves you can pick right off your supermarket shelf. Oh, no, now you can’t rest until you’ve gone to the American Spoon website to check out opportunities to spend from $9 to $14 for 9.5 ounces.
And there you’ll find an array, no, a plethora, of potential Christmas gifts. They’re exquisitely lovely and they taste good. And where else can you find an impressive present for no more than $15?
It’s true that your granny probably introduced you to American Spoon way back in the ‘90s, but you’ve probably been seduced away since then by your own local craft jam maker. It is wonderful that great condiments are a staple of the Buy Local movement. We love that the jam/jelly/chutney popup stands are abundant at your chic Saturday morning farmers’ market.
But for Christmas, come on back and give American Spoon another look. For one thing, they are one of the mothers of the artisanal food movement. Even Vogue and Saveur say so. They’ve been around almost 30 years, and what they don’t know about Sour Cherry Preserves, you don’t need to know.
To the iconic Spoon Fruits and Chocolate Fudge Sauce, they’ve added Maple BBQ Grilling Sauce and Pumpkin Seed Salsa. And Whiskey Maple Syrup. Butters, granola and dried cherries. We could go on at length.
How am I ever to devise a way to use all these goodies, you’re wondering? I do declare, get right on over to the recipes and wonder no more. Just take a look at crostini composed of Bartlett Pear Preserves with Roth Buttermilk Blue (Cheese), Caramelized Onion and Watercress. Mouth watering much?
They’re ready for the Season with a Holiday Handbook chocked full of yummy ideas for your Christmas Cookie Exchange and Pumpkin Pancakes for Christmas morning. Save yourself a trip to Northern Michigan to pick up the goodies, and let them send out your gift sets. They’ll even send your granny her catalogue.
Plan to make this an ultimate foodie Christmas with the help of American Spoon. You’ll swear Santa Claus stopped off on his way Up North to make his home in Petoskey.
P.S. What’s up with whole Chris Kimball leaving America’s Test Kitchen thing? The news is coal in my Christmas stocking.
