With the start of a new semester comes a new class schedule. And the way my courses are spaced out, I’ll likely be packing lunch five days of the week. That got me thinking, what should I bring? Since they’re easy to make and eat (plus good at room temp), sandwiches came to mind as a practical choice. There’s nothing wrong with a classic PB&J, but with a new year and new semester, I was in the mood for something fancier, which meant making my own nut butter and jam!
Almond butter and cashew butter are the more popular alternatives to peanut butter these days, and so I decided on pecan butter instead. Super simple to make, it came together in less than 15 minutes. I’ve been a fan of chia jam ever since my friend Amy shared some of her chia jam baked oatmeal with me. To my merriment, this blueberry chia jam came together in under 10 minutes, so even before my laundry was out of the wash, I had my very own homemade pecan butter and blueberry chia jam ready to go for that week’s lunch!
Pecan Butter + Blueberry Chia Jam Sandwich
*note: the amounts are really arbitrary;
you can easily scale up or down
Pecan Butter
Ingredients
- 6 oz. pecans
- Pinch of cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
Directions
- Toast pecans in the oven at 350°F, about 6 minutes. Let cool.
- Transfer the pecans into a food processor and blend, scraping down the sides when necessary. The mixture will be coarse at first but will gradually become liquid. Sprinkle in cinnamon and salt and continue blending until the consistency of nut butter is achieved, about 5 minutes. Store in the refrigerator.
Blueberry Chia Jam
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups frozen blueberries
- 2 tbsp chia seeds
- Squeeze of lemon juice
- Honey, to taste (I use ~2 tbsp)
Directions
- Cook blueberries in a small saucepan over medium heat until the blueberries begin to soften and burst, about 3 minutes.
- Mix in the chia seeds, lemon juice, and honey and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is very thick, less than 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat and let cool. Store in the refrigerator.
Spread pecan butter and blueberry chia jam between two pieces of sprouted whole wheat berry bread (add sliced avocado or banana, even a fried egg, if you like), and you’ve got yourself a fancy, nutritious sandwich!
Pancake Yancake 