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From an excess harvest of gooseberries to a thriving family business, Owls and Apple Pie is a one-stop shop for tasty homemade jams, preserves and relish.
It began when local English and history teacher Sarah Kleb decided to turn her home grown gooseberries into jam.
We grew fresh gooseberries and, as I was looking into the jam making process, I realised that I wanted to do something a little different.
“I have always loved gooseberry jam and I decided to make some. We grew fresh gooseberries and, as I was looking into the jam making process, I realised that I wanted to do something a little different.
“I made a few traditional jars of gooseberry jam and then decided to experiment by adding some artisanal gin that my brother brewed for my wedding. It was a total hit! I gave a few jars away and people started asking for more and that’s where it all began,” explains Kleb who is a mom of two and stepmom of two.
“I started supplying a few friends and then started to do a couple of markets here and there and it’s grown into a beautiful experience.”
Today Owls and Apple Pie has grown offer up 15 unique homemade products from their flavourful jams including apricot and rosemary, fig, ginger and whiskey, strawberry and thyme and blackberry and bourbon to their balsamic onion relish, peach chutney and lemon curd.
“Some of my combinations have been a result of waking up in the middle of the night with an idea and then giving it a whirl and I’ve never had a flavour combo bomb,” Kleb quips.
“Mostly it’s understanding the flavour palate and what works, and then the flavours tend to come together pretty effortlessly. I think it comes from knowing what I know about food and implementing what I love about flavour. I never make anything that I wouldn’t eat.”
While being a teacher for the better part of a decade, Kleb said food and cooking have always been a passion of hers.
“As different as the two fields may sound, there is an enormous amount of creativity required in education and I love what I do, my students and my colleagues. I never had any idea that I would ever have a business like Owls and Apple Pie, but I suppose that I have always dabbled in food.
“I have over the years cooked big dinners for friends, catered small events and for small functions, made wedding cakes and food for home industries and have loved to experiment in the kitchen. Our family loves food and my brother and I have a running competitive streak about who is better in the kitchen. We are quite a force to be reckoned when we combine our talents.”
A such, Kleb's venture has indeed been a family affair, with Kleb's parents also using their cooking skills to create some of the Owls and Apple Pie products.
“I am so blessed to be a part of a tightly knit family who support my venture and believe in my products. My husband, Jason, and my parents, Barry and Debra Hofert, are invested in seeing the company succeed and are ready to listen and act when I delegate. My mom is the face behind our tomato and whiskey jam and peach chutney, and my dad makes our famous pickled onions and balsamic onion relish,” Kleb said.
I love that we have a product for everyone, no matter your preference to taste
She says their fig, ginger and whiskey jam, lemon curd and their pickled onions have become firm favourites among customers, but that there was something to satisfy every palate.
“Our newest flavour, peach, cinnamon and whiskey jam, is becoming very popular too. It all depends on your palate though — some love the strawberry and thyme jam because it’s not as sweet as traditional strawberry jam; the freshness of the thyme cuts through that sweetness beautifully. I love that we have a product for everyone, no matter your preference to taste,” says Kleb.
Now spending much more time in the kitchen experimenting with flavours and perfecting the jam making process (often a time consuming one), Kleb says she has enjoyed every minute.
“The process is pretty time consuming because I have always believed that there is a huge difference in taste between mass-produced jam and small-batch craft jam like I make. Jam requires a long cooking time to dissolve the sugar and I use lemon juice to draw the natural pectin from the fruit to help with the thickening and setting process.
Much of Owls and Apple Pie relies on artistry and creation and it’s been an amazing creative outlet in the monotony of the day-to-day
“I only use real, fresh & locally sourced ingredients. There are absolutely no artificial flavourings, colourings or preservatives in my products. Even my herbs come straight from my garden because we don’t use any pesticides or sulphites to preserve them.”
She said being able tap into her creativity had been a wonderful experience.
“I love literature, the arts, history, good food and music. I love to read, sing, paint, write and create! Much of Owls and Apple Pie relies on artistry and creation and it’s been an amazing creative outlet in the monotony of the day-to-day,” said Kleb.
She said the business had not only brought her family closer, but also brought a lot of joy into their lives.
“We were already close, but working together has created a special bond and I am so very grateful to them. I also love that my daughter has been empowered to start experimenting with ideas for her own business and is a whizz of a sales lady,” said Kleb.
“Seeing the faces of the people who taste my products is the biggest reward. Their eyes light up and I’ve even had some teary customers tell me that my lemon curd takes them back to memories of their grannies or moms.
Food is a simple pleasure, but it’s something that is nourishing to the body and the soul
“I love to see the joy that the products bring to people. Food is a simple pleasure, but it’s something that is nourishing to the body and the soul. “
The full range of Owls and Apple Pie products can be found at Ginger and Co and The Country Butcher and Deli. Kleb and her family are also regulars at the Avalon Market in Kidd's Beach and the Fine and Fabulous Market at the Beacon Bay Country Club.
To find out more, visit the Owls and Apple Pie Facebook page.
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