Jam – Yellowbelly Food

Jenny’s chutney and jam: tried and tested

March 14, 2011 Emma Chapman Leave a comment

Jenny's raspberry jam. photo:Emma Chapman

Jenny has been producing jams for the last six years. I sampled her award-winning raspberry jam and faradays chutney to taste her success.

You can see why Jenny’s raspberry jam has been so successful, every sense sprang to life with enjoyment whilst indulging in this treat.

The initial experiences after popping the lid are mouth watering; a strong smell of ripe raspberries and a rich, glistening red content meeting the eye.

A thick, sticky jam packed full of seeds and flavour spread onto fresh white bread or even on toast is perfect at any time of the day. This jam is made with butter which gives an added richness and the tangy-yet sweet fruit of this preserve bursts onto your taste buds with every mouthful.

Spreading the faradays chutney you could see it was packed full of flavoursome juicy rasins. Once tasted, the apple content gave it a silky texture with the just the right balance of acidity.

The chutney proved to be good with or without an accomplice, however a mature cheddar complimented the flavours perfectly. You can get you hands on Jenny’s Jams from her website.

Review

Jenny’s Jams – sticky with success

February 2, 2011 Emma Chapman Leave a comment

Faradays chutney and raspberry jam. Photo: Emma Chapman

Jenny Smith worked as a chef for over 20 years until 2005 when a strawberry picking session opened new doors. After picking too many she decided to make jam for family and friends.

It was so well receivedthat Jenny decided to take it further and Jenny’s Jams was born. “At first I was a little dubious, I continued working as a part-time chef until December 2010. At that point I decided it was going to be more than a paid hobby,” said Jenny.

Jenny explained, “The business has grown very well despite the very tough trading climate. At times it has been slow going however, the preserves seem to be very well received by those who taste them”.

With her business growing so successfully Jenny is grateful for her friends and family that have volunteered to help out with “various tasks such as paperwork, labelling, and doing deliveries”.

The jams and chutneys come from traditional recipes and Jenny’s experiences as a chef. She said “I always look in old recipe books for ideas”. Expanding into chutneys and marmalades, however, came from customer suggestions and experimentation.

Jenny's raspberry jam on fresh, soft white bread. photo: Emma Chapman

Jenny’s products have been so successful that she has won several Great Tastes Awards, saying, “They were one of my best moments so far. They are considered the Oscars of the food industry, so recognition by my peers is fantastic. A very encouraging moment”.

Jenny also appeared on BBC2’s Working Lunch programme in 2009, she said, “Any media attention is also welcome, as it is all good advertising for the company. I do find I get very nervous though”.

Jenny uses Fresh from the Fields, a company based in Lincoln, amongst others for her ingredients. She said, “As far as possible I obtain ingredients locally. If they are grown in Lincolnshire, so much the better”. As well as trying to keep her ingredients local, Jenny’s products are also free of preservatives and additives.

Jenny supports the Lincolnshire economy further by getting her jars from Patteson’s Glass, near Brigg and her labels designed and printed by printing.com in Newark.