Chokecherry Festival Time

     The Chokecherry Festival time is one week away!  I still have jellies and jams to make and the barnyard to clean!  Where does my time go?  Here's a couple of well-kept secrets...I have a few new flavors of jams and jellies I've been testing, and I'm so excited! Side note:  This picture is from the past, so the REAL date is September 16th this year!

  The very day I went to the farm to begin my "clean-up," I received a call from a gentleman with a very kind voice.  He asked if I made hawberry jam, to which I replied, I did not.  He recalled this wonderful tasting jam that his Mother used to make and I told him I did not have a recipe.  He told me how his mother made it...right down to the last detail!  Well, there I was at the farm, standing on the creek bank under a hawthorn tree!  The only thing I knew they were good for was a very deep, non-healing wound from the big, sharp thorns every where on the tree.  I knew I didn't want to be anywhere near the tree!  I remembered the voice of the man who I could visualize as he told me lovingly of his mother and her wonderful tasting jam.  I knew I must try to replicate it for him!  My hands shot up in the branches (being careful not to get near a thorn) and I begin picking!  I had no where to put the berries, so I set my handfuls on the ground and ran to my husband's old "Bubba" farm truck.  I searched for a bag of some kind and ended up taking some bolts out of a plastic bag and throwing them in with a bag of nails (he'll never know - right?)  I ran back to the tree and picked enough berries until I thought I had enough to juice for a batch of jelly.  Let me tell you....this jam is to die for delicious!   I can't wait for him...and for you...to come and try a bottle of this beautifully red, sweet--but not too sweet--jam!

      Last year at the Festival, I had a couple of guests come to my booth searching....  When I asked if I could help them find something, they responded they had been directed to come to the Festival for the Chokecherry Wine!  I laughed and asked where they received their information!  When they told me, I knew this was a practical joke being played on me by a dear friend.  This dear friend just happens to make his own Chokecherry Wine!  Well, I coaxed him out of a bottle of his precious blend and created a new Vino Chokecherry Jelly!  Ok -- let me just say, this stuff is divine!  Joke is on him, because now he has to supply me with his good stuff so I can supply you!  This is definitely a gourmet taste treat you will want to sit down to experience, close your eyes, and be prepared for a taste bud sensation! 

      Last note -- a couple of years ago, I attended a farm seminar with my husband.  One of the speakers told us that less than 5% of Americans are involved in farming today.  This shook my world!  A life that I know and love and have so many fond memories locked away, and just a tiny fraction of people are able to experience it!  The Chokecherry Festival is not housed in a lovely, state of the art building nor in a brand new ranch barn.  The Festival is a "real" look at farm life and the everyday happiness and clarity that the life brings.  Lay aside your normal pressures of the day and come share a day "Down on the Farm"  Look to the left sidebar for the schedule -- and please come and share a wonderful day with us at the farm!