Grandma Edna’s Jams and Jellys bring bold flavors for any occasion
The first things people notice about Edna and Richard Neer’s booth at the Moscow Farmers Market are the tiny mason jars that read “Christmas,” “Spiced Pear,” “Raspberry” and more.
You may wonder how a jam or jelly could taste like an annual holiday such as Christmas, but with one taste Edna Neer, creator of Grandma Edna’s Jams and Jellys, works her magic.
Jake Smith | Argonaut
Edna Neer, proprietor of Grandma Edna’s Jams and Jellys, has made jam and jelly for as long as she can remember, but only since last year has she sold it for profit at the Moscow Farmers Market — a long drive from her home six miles south of Sandpoint, Idaho.
It was Edna’s mother who taught her about canning fruit, she said.
“I grew up canning with my mom,” Edna said. “She started making huckleberry jam when I was about four or five.”
It all started with huckleberries.
Edna and Richard met when they both attended high school in Sagle, Idaho. Their love would survive a war and a long separation.
“He survived a year in Vietnam and I survived a year without him,” Edna said.
In the 48 years they’ve been together, they’ve raised five kids with little money for food or other necessities but have always found a way to make it work. According to Edna and Richard, with help from their family, they would go out into fields and pick huckleberries to can.
Edna has exercised her creativity when it comes to different flavors of jellies and jams. The flavors range from classics like strawberry to more bold flavors like ginger pear. One of her most popular flavors, spiced plum, started as a happy accident.
“Spiced plum was a mistake because I was making plum jam and had the cinnamon sitting above the stove and (the cinnamon) started to fall over and there was a quite a lot that went into the pot, and then I thought ‘Oh … that’s tasty,'” Edna said
The best thing about the jams and jellies Edna and Richard sell — besides the taste — is their different uses. Edna and Richard said people can use some of the jams and jellies as a glaze for pork chops, roast or chicken.
“Christmas you can put on turkey or ham and finish it off with it, and it is awesome,” Edna said.
Richard and Edna listen to what their customers want in order to make accommodations. Edna said a woman she would make jellies for requested she make them with a low amount of pectin because of her allergies. These jams and jellies are also low in sugar.
With Grandma Edna’s Jams and Jellys, Edna and Richard are putting smiles on people’s faces and opening taste buds to memories and new ideas.
Jessy Forsmo-Shadid can be reached at [email protected]