As Justin Rashid, founder of American Spoon says, “Fruit is about seduction. If you just want a gummy, sweet paste, any brand of jam will do. But if you want a flavor experience, you have to buy a great preserve.” What makes this particular strawberry preserve so special? For starters the variety of berries. While only a few strawberry obsessed gardeners will recognize Early Glow by name, they’re special. Much smaller than your typical strawberry and apparently a bit fickle about ripening, their yields are quite low. Strawberry season in Michigan is shamefully short, even more so for these. Not surprisingly, few farmers choose to grow them.

For more than two decades Justin and his crew at American Spoon have bought all their Early Glow strawberries from the same farmer, who raises them on his centennial family farm in the heart of the Leelanau Peninsula. The preserve is berries with cane sugar only—no fructose, no corn syrup, no dextrose, no pectin. The fruit ratio is exceptionally high, about 60 percent.

Enough about the details. The aroma is amazing. The flavor lingers long. This is as good a strawberry jam as I've ever had. Spectacular.

We found this peanut butter almost right next door in Grand Rapids, MI. Like most of the simple great foods in our catalog (e.g heirloom corn polenta), it’s the result of much care and very little processing.

Jeff Koeze sources great Virginia peanuts, brings them north to Michigan in one ton sacks, then blanches them to remove the skins and keep them from going rancid (a common flaw in a lot of natural peanut butters, I think). He toasts the peanuts in vintage coffee roasters, adds sea salt, then grinds the mixture to the texture of spun silk.

The result is not an air-whipped, sugar-filled concoction but a natural, intense, velvety, mouthwatering sensation that sells out regularly. Get a couple of jars, quick.

"Coarsely ground in small batches and lightly seasoned with sea salt, it is neither creamy nor chunky but totally irresistible."
Florence Fabricant, New York Times

Crunchy: Same great peanuts, left chunky for those who like it that way.

This product is certified Kosher.