It's Our Jam: The Sticky Sweet Spreads Of Nashville Jam Co.

For over five years, Cortney and Gary Baron have been whipping up their jam and jellies and selling them throughout state of Tennessee — in farmers' markets, grocery stores and specialty shops. Their artisan product is made with fresh fruits, real sugar and lemon, with zero preservatives beyond the classic pectin. They jar more than a dozen bold flavors including apple-bourbon, mild three-pepper, raspberry-jalapeño and smoky tomato. But how did this tiny operation in Murfreesboro, Tennessee go from a hobby to a full-time job for the Baron family? Easy — they make a solid product people crave. Nashville native Gary Baron breaks down what makes his spreads awesome, as well as how you can spruce up your own home projects.

Have you always been into making jam?

Not jam, but cooking. I have always loved to cook and I grew up with a mom and grandmother that cooked. My grandmother was a great Southern cook, from start to finish. She cured her own country ham, and did other stuff that people just don't do anymore. When I was a teenager, I would come home from school or football practice and bake pies, so my love of cooking definitely began developing early on.

What made you decide to start Nashville Jam Co.?

Actually, it was a hobby that grew into a business. We went from making Christmas gifts with the abundance of our garden, canning the stuff and giving it away. People began asking, "Can we buy some of that to give away too?" That's really how it all started.

How did you introduce people, other than your family and friends, to the product?

We started selling our jams and jellies at our local farmers' market in 2010. Both of us were working and staying up late to make jam, then taking it to the farmers' market and selling out every weekend. We finally moved into a commercial facility and expanded our reach to Whole Foods and other grocery stores. Soon, food services started reaching out, and now the largest company that we serve is the Omni Hotel in Nashville where we provide the jam and jelly for their restaurant. The biggest concentration is in Tennessee, but we also have our jams in stores throughout Louisiana, Texas, New York and New Jersey.

Do you still sell at the farmers' market?

We still do the farmers' markets, especially the one here in Murfreesboro. We are at that farmers' market Saturday and Sunday from April through November. And, as far as marketing, it's been the best decision we've ever made. Every weekend we have people from out of town and chefs coming by that want to use our stuff!

Even though you have grown in production, you are still very much artisans and experts in your craft. How do you manage the quality?

One key to maintaining a quality product is the way in which we source our ingredients. We are proud to say we use real strawberries, blackberries, jalapeños, sugar and lemon juice. We source from a lot of local farmers and, even though our process is larger now, we make our jams and jellies the same way that anyone's grandma would've done it. We don't like to take any shortcuts and it's still very much a hands-on production process for us. The only difference is that we just do it on a larger scale. Instead of pouring out of a six-quart kettle, we are using a 40-gallon kettle. The biggest compliment is when someone says, "Wow, this tastes like the jam my grandma used to make."

So you hand-squeeze all those lemons?

You know, for a long time we did! Everyone that worked for us started looking like Popeye. Now we buy pasteurized lemon juice — which contains nothing but real lemon juice — so I bought some and it was like a revelation. Now that's all we use.

How many jars do you make per week? Is jam your family's full-time job?

We don't run full weeks. Right now, our team works eight to 10-hour shifts a couple times a week, and we pack 2,500 to 3,000 jars a day. But, we are getting ready to increase the weekly number of shifts as we are outgrowing that capacity pretty quickly. And, going into holiday season, we will probably have to do that three times per week.

We also produce other sauces, ketchups, mustards and some BBQ sauces, but jam is the flagship.

Any plans to expand the jam business further?

Well, we actually just signed a lease on a restaurant space just outside the city. We plan to serve elevated Southern food and, of course, jam and jelly will be a big part of that. It's called the National Jam Café, and we are also planning to do some production there, so hopefully patrons can actually see and appreciate the canning process. The setting will be very rustic and we will have cases of jam on pallets cut in half to give it a part warehouse, part country store feeling. It's right on the lake so I want to be open for spring 2015, once the lake traffic starts up again.

Aside from spreading on toast, what do you use jam for?

We have flavors like sweet onion and garlic, and peach-habanero, which make great glazes for meat. A lot of fruit jams pair well with cheeses too. And, any high-quality fruit jam with a little high-quality olive oil and vinegar blends together for an amazing vinaigrette. We make vinaigrette with our blackberry jam that's to die for!

What's the craziest jam concoction you have made?

The craziest would have to be the sweet onion and garlic jelly. It's fantastic! We also have a smoky tomato jam that's pretty unique.

Any tips for aspiring jam makers?

One — never add sugar before you add pectin. Always add pectin early in the process to give it time to hydrate, and then once it reaches 190℉ degrees, slowly add the sugar.

Two — always use fresh ingredients. When using fresh fruit, lightly freeze it before you start to cook it. The freezing causes the cells in the berries to rupture and it releases all the juices, which help it not burn when you cook it. If you don't, you are cooking the moisture off, but if you already have that juice in the bottom of your kettle, it acts as a buffer.

Lastly — most recipes will tell you to boil your jam. I'd recommend you buy a good candy thermometer and never let it get above 190℉. That will keep it from foaming and protect the delicate flavors of the fruit.

           This post is brought to you by our friends at Bridlewood Estate Winery.