Perfectly Preserved ‘beets’ its record — again

Perfectly Preserved treasurer Denise Linnett (left) and Perfectly Preserved Manager Jane Winwood (right) present Sharon Morcom PECMH Auxiliary Chair (centre) with $35,000 and a jar of best-selling beets.

Proving that records are made to be broken, the County’s Perfectly Preserved group announced its biggest year yet, with a $35,000 donation made toward the Prince Edward County Memorial Hospital Auxiliary’s purchase of a new echocardiogram for the hospital.

Since its inception 13 years ago, the nine-woman group of volunteers has grown its efforts from an annual bake sale into a year-round cooking, baking and sales effort to the hospital.

The small, but energetic team put in roughly 4,000 volunteer hours making and selling 3,555 jars of jam, pickles, jelly, mustard, relish and chutney.

“This year, we tried several new recipes that were extremely well received,” said Dorothy Speirs, Perfectly Preserved spokesperson. “A donation of Wellington Bay Honey resulted in hundreds of Wellington Bay Honey Butter tarts made that quickly sold out at both the Thanksgiving and Christmas sales.”

The Perfectly Preserved sales season kicked off early with a Valentine’s Day special at PEFAC featuring jam-filled heart-shaped cookies. All summer long, Perfectly Preserved was a common sight around the County with sales at the Picton Town Hall Farmers’ Market, Wellington Community Market as well as special events including the popular Women’s Institute Art and Craft sale, the Milford Fair, and the Harvest Festival in the Crystal Palace, all leading up to a grand finale Christmas sale at Rotary Hall in December.

“Thanks go out to everyone who has brought back their jars for re-use, and to all the kind farmers and gardeners who have donated so many fruits and vegetables.

“Local produce features in many of our products from Greenridge Farms’ pickled asparagus to zucchini relish made with vegetables from our gardens. Our small-batch, artisanal jams proved popular with both visitors and locals alike, as we sold more than 1,250 jars of more than a dozen different varieties, including the timely Elbows Up blend.”

But the year’s single biggest seller: pickled beets.

“We hope you’ll look for us under the big red tent in 2026,” added Jane Winwood, Perfectly Preserved Manager.