Thumbprint Jammers – for jam lovers!

It is no secret around here that I’m addicted to sweets and pastries.  My ideal mornings always start out with a cup of coffee and a freshly baked pastry.  Luckily there are quite a few amazing bakeries in Seattle that I like to occasionally indulge in and get inspiration from for my own baking adventures.  On the top of that list is Macrina Bakery.  I always try something different whenever I’m there and I’ve yet to find something that I’m disappointed by.  The last time we were there I ordered the buttermilk biscuit which essentially is a really big, super flaky biscuit with a delightful center of jam.  I LOVED it, but one thing that my husband noted when I let him have a bite was that you didn’t get jam in every bite and the combo of the biscuit and the jam was essential.  I agreed and decided that I would try to make something similar but in my version, you would for sure get jam in every bite!

I opened up  my Grand Central Baking Book (another bakery I love!) to find a recipe for their Jammers which was very similar to Macrina’s in that the biscuit part was very large and the jam was only in the center.  I basically just took the biscuit recipe and instead of making the biscuits huge and dense, I made them flatter and bite sized.  I bought my favorite jam and filled each one to the brim and came out with the perfect little Thumbprint Jammers! 

Thumbprint  Jammers – adapted from Grand Central Bakery Jammers

Ingredients
4 cups all purpose flour
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup cold unsalted butter
1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
About 3/4 cup preserves or jam

*side note: this makes A LOT of  Thumbprint Jammers so I recommend cutting this recipe in half if you don’t want a crazy amount.  I think I made about 16-18 with cutting the recipe in half.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Lightly grease a baking sheet or line it with parchment paper.

  1. Measure the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda into a bowl with high sides or the bowl of a stand mixer and whisk to combine.
  2. Dice the butter into 1/2 inch cubes.   Use your hands or paddle attachment of your stand mixer on low speed to blend the butter into the dry ingredients until the texture of the flour changes from silky to mealy.  There should still be dime-to quarter-size pieces of butter remaining.  If you’re preparing the dough the night before, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill overnight, otherwise proceed with the recipe.
  3. Make a well in the flour mixture and pour in 1 cup of the buttermilk in one addition.  Gently  mix the dough just until it comes toghether, it will look rough.
  4. Scrape the dough from the sides and bottom of the bowl, then add another 1/4 cup buttermilk and mix again to incorporate any floury scraps.  The majority of the dough will come together, on the paddle if you are using a stand mixer.  Stop mixing while there are still visible chunks of butter and floury patches.  The dough should come out of the bowl in 2 to 3 large, messy clumps, leaving only some small scraps and flour around the sides of the bowl.  If the dough is visibly dry and crumbly add up to 1/4 cup more buttermilk, 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing no more than one rotation after each addition.
  5. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface.  Use the heels and sides of your palms to gather the dough and gently pat it into an oblong shape 1 inch thick.  It won’t look smooth or particularly cohesive, that’s okay.
  6. Using a knife, cut out the sizes of dough that you’d like your jammers to be.  (Grand Central advises using a biscuit cutter but I don’t have one and I wanted mine to be small.)
  7. Shape the dough into your biscuit and use your thumb to make an indentaion in the middle of each biscuit.  Try to apply as little pressure as possible to the outside of the biscuit, to avoid smashing the layers, which are the key to flaky jammers.  Fill each indentation with jam and put the jammers on the prepared baking sheet with 1 1/2 inches between them.
  8. Bake for 30-35 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time.  The jammers should be a deep golden brown.  (Note, if you are making the regular size jammers, Grand Central recommends baking for 35 to 40 minutes)
  9. Let cool and then enjoy with a fresh pot of coffee! 🙂

My notes about this recipe

  • Make sure to handle the dough VERY little.  The first batch I went crazy with making the indentations and the biscuit didn’t come out as fluffy as the second time where I was careful not to handle the dough too much.
  • Don’t fill the jam over the top of the indentation like in my picture above.  If it’s not encased in the indentation, it will just overflow and get all over your pan. 
  • The Grand Central recipe calls for 1.5 teaspoons of salt but when my first batch came out, I didn’t like how salty the biscuit was so I cut it, by a lot but it’s up to you if you really like the salty/sweet combination. 

The containers that hold my sugar and flour are these Martha Stewart containers that I am obsessed with!  I had a little baking party with a girlfriend of mine and she had these in her kitchen and I immediately knew I needed to have them so the next day I went out and bought one for each of my baking essentials.  It helps so much to have them in these containers and each one comes with it’s own measuring cup which is so handy.  Funny story about the labels – I bake enough to recognize what is in the container just by looking at it, especially the sugars but every time hubs went to look for the sugar, he’d pull out every container that resembled sugar (all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, self rising flour, granulated sugar, powdered sugar – like I said, I bought these containers for everything!) and tried to decipher them.  He bought some waterproof labels and now, nobody gets confused 😉 

Previous Story
Next Story
  • Pauline
    October 17, 2011 at 12:37 pm

    YUMMY! I am making these tomorrow! P.s love the pattern on your plate and mug 🙂

  • kileen
    October 17, 2011 at 1:59 pm

    yay for more recipes! i love having a bit of fruit jam in cookies and these look so delish! you're quite the chef, Tiff!

    cute & little

  • CessOviedo
    October 17, 2011 at 2:20 pm

    Sitting here in front of the pc drinking a great cup of coffee, those jammers would be perfect! Don't think I've ever tasted them but they look delish! Love your baking posts!

    Cess O. <3 The Outfit Diaries

  • Jen @ A Touch of Lovely
    October 17, 2011 at 2:20 pm

    Mmmm my mouth is officially watering!

  • Michelle
    October 17, 2011 at 4:03 pm

    considering i live on sugar and pastries i am quite surprised i've never tried anything like these. thanks for sharing the recipe – i think i'll make a half batch to try them out. yum!

  • DiamondsandTulle
    October 17, 2011 at 5:28 pm

    OMG how cute are these and the adorable name? I was just thinking about you and your midnight bakery because I've been wanting to make some sweet treats! Thanks for the recipe! Will have to let you know if I try and make some!

    xx Vivian @ http://diamondsandtulle.blogspot.com

  • nancy
    October 17, 2011 at 5:52 pm

    yum-OH!! these make me think of my childhood and i love that. =) fun!
    xo,
    -nancy from adore to adorn blog

  • AdamAlexMommy
    October 17, 2011 at 8:51 pm

    It looks absolutely delish! I have to try it… my kids will love it!

    Great blog, btw!

    http://adamalexmommy.blogspot.com

  • yuni.k
    October 17, 2011 at 10:00 pm

    Oh I used to make these as a child and now a flood of memories are coming back! And your side note made me laugh, what crazy person wouldn't want a crazy amount of these?! They are so addicting!

  • Bonnie
    October 17, 2011 at 10:29 pm

    I love this!!!! It looks delicious and actually really fun.

    http://www.glamkittenslitterbox.com/
    Twitter: @GlamKitten88

  • bevy
    October 17, 2011 at 10:37 pm

    Those look yummy. I like bite-sized anythings, makes it so much easier to stuff my face. Also, cute plate and mug!

  • Phuong Pham
    October 17, 2011 at 10:46 pm

    I've been loving all of your food related posts especially the ones about baking. You really inspired me to start learning about baking. Thank you so much. Hope you'll keep it up and share with us more baking recipes that you try out and have success like this.

  • Make Mommy Chic
    October 18, 2011 at 2:04 am

    Tiffany, how do you stay in great shape? Seriously, if i ate pastries every morning I wouldn't be able to fit into my J brand pants 🙁 My kids would love these (okay, i am lying, I would LOVE these). Thanks for sharing your recipe and tips. Will definitely try it out 🙂

  • cryskay
    October 18, 2011 at 6:10 am

    yum!! i bought a few jars of jam in nashville and have been meaning to use it. i think this recipe is just perfect!

  • Twinkle
    October 18, 2011 at 8:44 am

    omgosh baking these as soon as possible! Yum!

  • simplyvonne
    October 18, 2011 at 2:32 pm

    oh yummy!!!! I made these (similar recipe) last thanksgiving and it was a hit because it wasnt so sweet! thanks for reminding me about it, I have to make some soon!!!

  • SassyUptownChic
    October 19, 2011 at 3:18 pm

    Hey Tiffany! Love your Kitchen Aid Blender. Girl they are the best! Your biscuits look SCRUMPTIOUS!!! I'm a pastry fan too. And good for you at making them better than the bakery. Love it when you can make your own. I follow your sister Jen at Red Soles Red Wine. She has impeccable taste. I didn't know she had a sister. So I wanted to introduce myself and love the things you sell in your shop. I can't wait for the bags to come out. Lovely blog and can't wait to read more! 😀
    http://sassyuptownchic.blogspot.com/