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Friday, September 17, 2010

Yam I Am

My good friend and co-worker, Cindy, took a trip with her family to Israel this summer. She very generously brought back presents for everyone in the office -- beautiful jars of jams and jellies.

I was enormously flattered when she gave me a jar and said, "Do you like quince?" Of course I do -- thank you! "Oh, good. I knew I could give Mary the quince jam."

Not only is the jam lovely in the usual ways, i.e.: on toast. But I used it for my recent holiday dinner as a key ingredient: I topped some sliced yams with a mix of butter and jam, then baked them in the oven for awhile. The yams were tender, sweet, luscious ... they were absolute perfection.

I thought it would be difficult to top my usual yam dish -- bake the yams like potatoes, scoop the flesh from the skins and mash in some brown sugar and a bit of both butter and apple cider. But I'd wanted some variation on the theme this year.

My little risk of just winging it on the spur of the moment with no recipe or even a fully formed notion of a plan worked out beautifully, thank goodness. The yams prompted me to think of this line from Dr. Seuss' Green Eggs & Ham: "They are so good, so good, you see!"

Quince-Glazed Baked Yams

2 large yams, peeled, cut into thick (not quite 1/2") slices
1/3 cup butter, softened, divided into 2 equal portions
1/4 cup quince jam
3 tablespoons brown sugar

Preheat oven to 400F.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; add yam slices and cook for 10 minutes until tender. Drain.

Grease a baking dish and cover the bottom of it with a layer of yams; dot with bits of butter.


Repeat layers until finished with both yams and one portion of the butter.

Melt the remaining portion of butter and stir in the jam. Spread this over the top of the yams, then sprinkle with the brown sugar.

Bake the yams for 30 minutes, then serve and enjoy ... :)




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16 comments:

  1. As usual it looks dee-lish! I love yams.

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  2. I've never had quince jam before, but that wouldn't stop me from trying your yams!!! They look so good!!

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  3. Did someone say YAM??? I don't yams get the attention they deserve! Hey!!! Missed stopping by - had to check in and see what yummy goodies you had in store!

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  4. there's no way that could be anything BUT delicious, Mary! It looks great, I wish I had quince jam to make some for myself :)

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  5. Mary, I do love yams and those look so yummy! And, you know how I love to just "wing it" in the kitchen. Some of my best dishes are created in the same way you did these yams. Don't ever stop it! :)

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  6. Hi,

    You can come over and cook any time! Im your newest follower. Have a great weekend.

    http://rwriterjourney.blogspot.com/2010/09/boudreauxs-baby-products-review.html

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  7. I have never had quince either but would so be willing to take a taste if the opportunity came! Looks yummy!


    I am a new follower! :) http://txbramletts.blogspot.com

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  8. I've never had quinces. I've only heard about them in British movies. In Miss Marple's A Murder is Announced, the policeman asked if they always left the backdoor unlocked. The lady said, 'Of course. How else could we leave quinces and vegetable marrows on the back table?' (I think I'm paraphrasing somewhat). Looks like I need to try this recipe!
    Have a great weekend!

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  9. Those look amazing. Great call!

    Lots of yummy love,
    Alex aka Ma What's for Dinner?
    www.mawhats4dinner.com

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  10. yumm stopping by from friday follow over forty and am your newest follower stop by sometime..

    http://www.livelaughlovewiththeponderingprincess.com/2010/09/how-do-you-make-lemonade-out-of-these.html

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  11. Yum-that looks delicious. Would that be something that you might typically serve for Thanksgiving? I try to have a Thanksgiving dinner here every year and I really like the sound of this dish!

    Best wishes,
    Natasha.

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  12. That does look good. I can't eat regular potatoes (allergie), but I can eat sweet potatoes. So that recipe looks very appealing. One of the things that is showing up more and more in restaurants that I love is sweet potato french fries. I miss regular french fries, but the sweet potato french fries makes it almost all better!

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  13. That looks so good! I've never had quince....I don't even know what it is; but I'm going to Google it for sure. :0)

    Love yams!

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  14. That looks delicious :) We have quinces in our garden, but not really enough to make jelly.

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  15. Awesome gift. You really used the quince jam very creatively. next time, I am making baked yams, I think jam would be a great topping. Thanks for the idea.

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  16. I am ashamed to say I don't know what a quince is!
    I would love to try those yams!
    They look delish!
    Have a pretty day!
    Kristin

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So, let's chat! I love hearing from my friends ... :)