Fast-food and freezer-section-weary consumers can find relief at the Raspberry Ranch in Marengo.
Nell and Rudolph Gron have earned a loyal following with their sparkling homemade jellies, homebaked fruit pies, and raspberries, grapes and vegetables straight from the gardens that they have tended for the past 29 years.
Twelve acres of vegetables and six acres of raspberries border the Gron`s tidy white frame house. Neat rows of red, purple and black raspberries are bordered with grassy green paths, which make U-pick berries ($2.10 per pound)a simple task, but pre-picked berries ($2.50 per pint) can be arranged by phoning ahead. Raspberries are available twice; in late July, and again from late August until the first frost. Concord grapes are also available in late September.
At first, the Grons sold only fruits and vegetables on their stand. But in one bumper-crop year for berries, Nell put her extra homemade jelly out for sale. ”I sold it,” recalls Nell, ”and people came back for more. So I made a little more, and sold that . . .”
She now wholesales to area businesses as well, and her jelly making and pie baking has been moved out to a new, freestanding kitchen on the property. Traditional flavors are a mainstay of Raspberry Ranch jelly ($2.05 per 10 oz. jar, or $22 per dozen), but unusual mixtures are their hallmark. ”I do a booming business in strawberry-rhubarb,” notes Nell. Other blends include apple-raspberry, strawberry-peach, and strawberry-pineapple.
She also makes a spiced tomato jam, which she says is ”along the lines of a homemade chili sauce in flavor. It`s good with roast beef, and some people might put it on toast.”
Luscious fruit pies come in five flavors, and can be ordered year-round by calling ahead and arranging for a pick-up time. Prices range from $5.50 to $7, depending on variety.
When it comes to the homegrown flavor and quality at Raspberry Ranch, Nell puts it best when she says, ”Once people taste it, they`re hooked on it!”
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Raspberry Ranch is located on Rt. 20 in Marengo, 3.2 miles west of Rt. 23, and is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily, closed on Mondays after Labor Day. Call 815-568-8793.
