Elaine and Ed Riopelle sell their breads, jams, mustards, and marmalades at the Hillsdale Farmer’s Market. Elaine’s company is called Elaine’s Kitchen Delights.
How did you get started selling your things at the farmer’s market?
Ed: Well, we’ve been here for three years, and the market has been here for four, so we’ve been here almost since the beginning. It started out with some banana and other breads, a few jams and the mustard, of course.
Elaine: My niece was getting married in Jamaica; this was our way to raise money.
Ed: After that year, we came back and bought new furniture. With the money we earned this year, we hope to travel to England and possibly Scotland.
How did you two meet?
Ed: We met while I was serving at my last duty station in South Carolina. I joined the Air Force in ’77 and then we moved here in ’99.
Where do you get all the recipes?
Elaine: Most of these are my family’s recipes, some I invented.
Ed: The mustard is her great-grandmother’s recipe.
On what types of things would you put your cranberry mustard?
Elaine: Sandwiches or anything else you would put normal mustard on. When you pack a lunch, you can just put the little jar of mustard in along with everything else.
Do you make all the different coverings to the jams and mustards yourself?
Elaine: Yes. Each type has its own covering, so I can just look down and pick out exactly what they want.
Ed: She has it memorized. I still have to look with the customers for whatever they want. We also pick all of our own fruits, except for the grapefruit and oranges. We’ve added many more jams and mustards since the beginning.
