Category Archives: poetry

Olallieberry -
so good on buttered wheat toast!
This jam is a treat…

Until a few years ago I’d never tasted olallieberry jam, and boy was I missing out!  I was introduced to the wonders of olallieberry by my friend, Ariella Fiore, and I’m so glad I was.  I bought some jars of homemade jam from Ariella, and was instantly smitten with both the taste and the deep, jewel-like color.

Given that I was an “olallieberry virgin” I had to Google olallieberries, and learned from Wikipedia that they’re a cross between the loganberry and the youngberry.  The olallieberry “grandparents” are the more familiar blackberry, raspberry, and dewberry.  I guess it’s fair to say this is a hybrid berry love child, blessed with both good looks and great taste!

As you probably guessed from the haiku above I love to put this jam on hot, buttered wheat toast.  And while I’d also love to use it for sandwiches, and maybe ice cream topping, I’m resisting the urge.  Because I only get a certain number of jars of jam from Ariella each year I kind of ration it.  Yep, I’m a jam hoarder!

I use regular Smucker’s Strawberry Jam for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and save this jam for my breakfast toast.  This year I purchased six 8 oz. jars of ollalieberry jam, and hope we make it through the year without running out.  Sure, I can make do with something else, but life is sweeter and brighter with olallieberry jam from Ariella’s kitchen…

Do you have special ingredient, condiment, or treat that you savor?  Something that makes a meal special for you?  I’d love to hear about it.

Warm regards,
Melody

p.s. Ariella (aka The Quilting Mama) was the first to be featured in my Remarkable Women Series.  She sings, acts, sews, cooks and bakes like nobody’s business.  She lives in The Valley (Like, Omigod!), but keeps chickens, gardens, and harvest fruit from the family’s trees.  I love her jam, and am also a fan of her Plenty Big Blankets and bibs for adults.  (I had a bib custom-made for my large, spill-prone father.) Hurray, Ariella – go on with your talented, eclectic self!