What Can You Do With Extra Jelly?
Extra jelly is one of the most versatile pantry rescues in the kitchen. Use it to glaze ham, make homemade BBQ sauce, swirl into ice cream, mix into cocktails, or create a two-ingredient salad dressing — all without any special equipment or extra shopping.
Quickest win: Add a splash of olive oil, a spoonful of mustard, and a splash of vinegar directly to a near-empty jelly jar, shake well, and you have an instant salad dressing with almost zero cleanup.
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Sweet Ways to Use Jelly
Savory Ways to Use Jelly
Unexpected Ways
FAQ
15 Ways to Use Extra Jelly at a Glance
Use
Category
Best Jelly Flavor
Thumbprint Cookies
Sweet / Baking
Any — tart flavors work best
Homemade Pop-Tarts
Sweet / Baking
Strawberry, grape, raspberry
Jelly Pancake Syrup
Sweet / Breakfast
Any fruit jelly
Jelly Ice Cream Swirl
Sweet / Frozen
Raspberry, strawberry, blueberry
Jelly-Glazed Ham
Savory / Meat
Pepper, apricot, or grape
Jelly-Glazed Meatballs
Savory / Meat
Grape (classic)
Spicy Jelly Wings
Savory / Meat
Pepper jelly or apricot
Jelly-Stuffed Brie
Savory / Cheese
Fig, raspberry, or cranberry
Jelly Vinaigrette
Savory / Sauce
Raspberry or strawberry
Jelly BBQ Sauce
Savory / Sauce
Grape, peach, or pepper
Jelly Stir-Fry Sauce
Savory / Sauce
Apricot, plum, or orange
Jelly Cocktails
Unexpected / Drinks
Any — blackberry with bourbon
DIY Fruit Leather
Unexpected / Snack
Any — mix flavors for fun
Jelly-Glazed Vegetables
Unexpected / Cooking
Pepper, apricot, or raspberry
Fix Runny Jelly
Pantry / Rescue
Any homemade jelly
Sweet Ways to Use Up Extra Jelly
1
Jelly-Filled Pastries and Desserts
A spoonful of jelly can turn simple baked goods into something that tastes bakery-worthy. These are the classics for a reason — and all of them are surprisingly simple to pull off at home.
Thumbprint Cookies: Press a well into buttery shortbread dough, fill with your favorite jelly, and bake. Tart jelly balances the sweetness of the cookie best.
Homemade Pop-Tarts: Layer jelly between two sheets of pastry dough, crimp the edges, bake, and drizzle with a simple glaze. Genuinely better than the box.
Jelly-Filled Croissants: Slice store-bought croissants, spoon in a generous amount of jelly, and warm briefly in the oven for a fruity morning pastry with almost zero effort.
Swiss Roll Cake: Spread a thin layer of jelly over a flat warm sponge cake, roll carefully, and slice for an impressive dessert. Our Peaches, Honey and Wine Glazed Ham uses the same sweet-layering approach on the savory side.
Crumb Bars: Jelly is a perfect filling for shortbread crumble bars. Strawberry and raspberry are classic, but apricot and grape work equally well.
Pro Tip: Slightly tart jelly works best in baked goods so the final result is not overwhelmingly sweet. Raspberry, blackberry, and sour cherry are ideal picks.
2
Breakfast Upgrades
Put down the maple syrup for a minute. Jelly opens up a lot of te
