Fellow jelly folks can probably relate to having a number of un-gelled jars lurking around. Sure, I can call it syrup and pretend I meant to do that, but I would just be lying. And truthfully, I am not a very good liar. Instead, I like to repurpose my mistakes. Turn them into something spectacular so that nobody even remembers that I made a mistake in the first place (hopefully).
One of the best mistakes I made this year is a batch of maple chipotle glaze. Ok, it’s jelly gone wrong, but I glaze everything with it. The latest thing to be glazed with maple chipotle is BBQ sauce. This produces a luscious thick sauce with complex flavors. It is something that I will never be able to reproduce exactly because I used the last jar of runny maple chipotle and one jar of liquid beer ‘jelly’ (I was testing new pectin and found one that I did not like).
Occasionally I have pickle problems too. Lurking in the canning pantry are a few jars of over processed pickled garlic. Over processing makes for a mushy pickle that might be tasty but has a less than desirable texture, perfect for a pureed sauce.
This sauce just goes to show that two wrongs do make a right. If you don’t have soft jelly hanging around, reach for one big jar of grape or strawberry jelly and some chipotle in adobo and go to town with it! The result is a sweet sauce that is subtly spicy and rich in flavor.
Jelly Barbeque Sauce yields 3- 1.5 pint jars
- 16oz (2 jars) jelly
- 28oz tomato puree
- 8oz pickled garlic + brine (sub 1c roasted garlic and 1c apple cider vinegar)
- 2T mustard
- 2T ground cumin
- 1/4c dried onion flakes (sub 1/2c chopped, cooked white onion)
- 2T salt
- 1T black pepper
- 2T paprika
- 1ts oregano
- 1ts thyme
- Cayenne to taste
- water to preferred consistency
Simmer everything together for 20 minutes. Puree until using a stick blender or transfer to a blender. Return the sauce to the pan (if necessary) and continue to simmer on low heat for 2-4 hours. Stir often to keep the sauce at the bottom from scorching. The longer the sauce cooks the richer the flavor will become. If the sauce becomes too thick, thin it out with water.
Store extra sauce in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. Optionally ladle into jars and process in a boiling water canner for 15 minutes (1/2pints).
Nancy Warner 
Nice save! Jams that don’t work out usually become “berry/plum/whatever sauce” for pancakes around here. 🙂
Thanks! Somehow beer jelly for breakfast in fine but beer but syrup on pancakes didn’t sound as appealing :)~