Harbin Hollow Superfood Preserves

Howdy! You probably realize by now that all of our handcrafted, all-natural products are made with health and wellness in mind. This includes our Elderberry & Strawberry Superfood Preserves, so I wanted to write an article filled with facts and clinical research to explain why we chose each ingredient and to explain why we prefer our preserves over traditional jams and jellies.

Harbin Hollow Superfood Preserves pack a mean nutritious punch for such a sweet treat. They are sweetened with middle TN honey, and contain chia seeds, elderberries, strawberries, and citric acid. We enjoy them on toast or a buttermilk biscuit (we are Southern after all), on a PB & J, or as part of a charcuterie tray.

Let’s start with the most unique ingredient found in our preserves, chia seeds.

Chia Seed Benefits

Our superfood preserve recipe replaces commonly used fruit pectin with nutrient dense chia seeds as a thickening agent.

An important food consumed by the Mayans and Aztecs, these tiny black seeds, derived from the plant Salvia Hispanica (related to mint), contain protein, fiber, omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants. They are a “complete protein – meaning that they have all nine essential amino acids that the body cannot make.” [1]

You see why we choose chia over fruit pectin? Let’s move on to the fruit we use!

Elderberry Benefits

By now, you probably know we love all things elderberry, so naturally they are an ingredient in our Superfood Preserves.

The European elderberry, Sambicus Nigra, has been used for centuries to promote wellness and offer immune support. Elderberry-based supplements are believed to work by supplying the body with antioxidants and boosting its natural immune response.[2] Some studies indicate elderberries can stimulate the immune response and stop the replication of viruses within the body.[3]

Sounds like the perfect ingredient to sneak in your jelly, right?

Strawberry Benefits

Next up, the strawberry! Strawberries are one of the most popular berries. Harbin Hollow is located in Portland, a small rural city in Tennessee, most famous for our strawberry crop and the Middle Tennessee Strawberry Festival. We loved the idea of combining a little bit of Portland with our love of elderberries, so our Elderberry and Strawberry Superfood Preserves were born.

Strawberries are a rich source of a wide variety of nutritive compounds such as, vitamins, and minerals, as well as flavonoids, anthocyanins and phenolic acids. “All of these compounds exert a synergistic and cumulative effect on human health promotion.” [4]

Who knew strawberries were all that and more? Let’s move on to how we sweeten our preserves.

Honey Benefits

When we started making elderberry products, finding a local, trusted, inspected honey farm to supply us was extremely important. Unfortunately, many commercial brands of honey you find on grocery store shelves have been adulterated with sugar, high fructose corn syrup, or antibiotics. Our honey is only sourced from Pick TN honey farms inspected and permitted by the TN Department of Agriculture.

Honey is a natural sweetener, has a complex composition, and compared to sugar, has a lower glycemic index and energetic value.[5] However, honey does still react in the body similarly to sugar, so if you are a diabetic, use in moderation and monitor your blood sugar levels when consuming.

One tablespoon of our Superfood Preserves only contains 6 grams of sugar, compared to double that in most brands of jams and jellies. It really is guilt-free, and we love supporting our local honey farmers!

Citric Acid Benefits

The final ingredient in our preserves is citric acid. We use it to balance the pH of the product and as a preservative to insure it is shelf stable and safe for consumption. It is a natural food acidity regulator, an antimicrobial agent, and has antioxidant properties. Citric acid is derived from the acid found in citric fruits.[6]

Analysis and Manufacturing Safety

All of our products have been sent to the lab at the University of Tennessee Food Science for analysis and I (Michele Harbin) am a graduate of the Better Process Control School, a certification course that has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration as well as the United States of Agriculture for processors of acidified and low acid canned foods.[7] Each product is manufactured in the FDA inspected, Pick TN Facility, Farm & Food, in Nashville, TN. Farm & Food is a Nashville based company that serves all of Tennessee as well as our seven neighboring states.  Farm & Food Spices is a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business operating in Nashville, Tennessee. [8]

So, there you have it! The superiority that is Harbin Hollow Superfood Preserves has been outlined, identified, and explained.

Order online here: Harbin Hollow Elderberry & Strawberry Superfood Preserves 

About the Author:

Michele Harbin is a certified nutrition coach who’s focused turned to creating natural health solutions when she was unhappy with products on the store shelves. She is the owner of Harbin Hollow where they handcraft, all-natural products with health and wellness in mind. She loves to inspire others and found that offering real, tangible solutions like handcrafted elderberry syrup, superfood preserves, and local bee pollen gives folks the tools they need to heal from the inside out. She is a wife to television producer Ron Harbin and mother to Lylah Jane (6 years) and Cooper Jennings (2 years). A free spirit with an entrepreneur’s drive, Michele never sits still, loves to travel, has a passion for revamping traditional recipes for healthier versions, is a true Southern girl, and will literally talk your ear off. 

[1] https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/mayo-clinic-minute-chia-its-not-just-a-pet/

[2] https://health.clevelandclinic.org/elderberry-a-natural-way-to-boost-immunity-during-cold-and-flu-season/

[3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22972323

[4] https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2015/FO/C5FO00147A#!divAbstract

[5] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5817209/#!po=0.657895

[6] https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Citric-acid

[7] http://foodscience.tennessee.edu/betterprocesscontrolschool/

[8] http://farmandfoodspices.com/about-us/