WHEN it comes to making jam, Lisa O'Connor is hitting all the right notes.
Today instead of a musical jam this former opera singer is now better known as the "jam lady" for her innovative range of marmalades and jams.
"I was born in Newcastle and studied opera in Florence, Sydney and then Melbourne," says Lisa who has been making the jams since 1995.
"Friends kept giving me lots of fruit which I couldn't eat so I started making jam and gave it to friends who had cafes.
"They suggested I should make it commercially and much to the surprise of family and friends I gave up opera singing as I was tired of all the travelling and started 'Jam Lady Jams'.
"I liked the fact that I could hold a jar of jam and say 'I made that' as it's a lot more tangible and the audience doesn't have to be listening."
And while she still sings in the kitchen, it's the jars of innovative preserve combos that have everyone singing Lisa's praises.
Strawberry aniseed, damson plum, fig and Earl Grey, date and orange blossom or blackberry shiraz, stand side by side with zesty lime, cumquat and sherry, Seville orange and chai marmalades, guaranteed to enliven the breakfast toast.
Lisa moved to Healesville in Victoria about seven years ago and recalls how she went up there for the weekend and fell in love with Richard Hauptmann who was a chef in the valley.
They now have a five-year-old daughter, Carmen, and live in the heart of Healesville.
"It has a gorgeous old garden and we rebuilt one garage for the commercial kitchen and use the other one for storing and packaging."
Richard now also has another business, Handmade in Healesville, with friend Alan Harding.
While the three of them work together with Jam Lady Jam, Richard and Alan do lots of poached fruit, relishes, terrines of chocolate and venison and duck neck sausage as well as using some of the marmalades for meat glazes and steamed puddings.
"I pride myself on my marmalades and try to use organic local producers wherever possible and I like to support the citrus growers who have been going through such a hard time the last few years," says Lisa.
"I have been exporting to Singapore for five years as there are a lot of English people there who love the marmalades, but it would be really fantastic to get them into England."
Jam Lady Jam, Lisa O'Connor phone (03) 5962 2481 or email jamlady@tpg.com.au
