OMG, I love that wooden basket. That is amazing. Lucky you Oly. And the rest of the package is pretty darn nice too. I've heard some really good things about that Cookbook.

Well done Nancy.

Ann

I love that bowl and the goodies are mouth watering. Oh . . . yes, can I have a piece of that cake. Great swap . . . Nancy. Adele

Oh that is a gorgeous bowl/basket. I love the grain and the finish, that would look sooooooo good in my cottage. I'll trade you my first born for it!

As everyone knows that book would be lost on me but I'm not above being a taste tester!

Great jon Nancy!

Lucky Oly!

Oooohhhh, good job Nancy!

Oly, Enjoy your swap box! I hope this means you will participate in more swaps?

Super Swap package! I too think that bowl is amazing and the book and goodies look great!

Wow! That IS a "one of a kind" bowl! Beautiful! Taht cookbook sure has a delicious cover! Sounds like a good one! The jams and preserves are delicious, I'm sure! Lucky you! Enjoy!

Great job Nancy!!

WOW....that package got from MI to CA in record time! Chalk one up for the USPO, I just got it to the PO Thursday about 4:30 pm.

Oly, I had a little help from a mutual friend on the cookbook who told me you liked to bake. When I saw that one, it was all I could do to hold myself back from buying two copies. But I was strong, at least until I see it again, LOL. I wasn't quite as strong when it came to the wood basket, I loved them so much I bought several, One for you, one for me, and a couple of Christmas gifts. Mine is sitting in the middle of our table, filled with apples at the moment.

Enjoy the jams, I love making them and wanted you to have a taste of Michigan fruits.

Nancy

I love that basket, too. Nancy, I'm sure yours looks beautiful filled with apples! Oly, how are you going to display yours?

The jams all sound delicious (just reading your description puts me in the mood to make some!) I've seen that book in the stores before - lucky you, Oly!!

Another beautifully done swap -

Lori

That basket is truly amazing. The homemade jams look yummy! Can't wait for you to try out some of the recipes from the cookbook and post.

Very creative, Nancy. Aren't these swaps the best, Oly?

Great cookbook! I love Dorie Greenspan, and her articles so I bought that cookbook! It's great. Some of her recipes are in the November issue of Bon Appetit! The bowl is interesting and beautiful What a fantatsic package, homemade treats, too! Excellent, Nancy! Enjoy it all, Oly, lucky you!

Nancy that basket is incredible. And the jams look wonderful. I gained two virtual pounds looking at the cover of that cookbook. Can't wait for recipes, Oly.

Mmmmmmm Red Haven's are yummilishes! Lucky you on all those wonderful jams.

The cookbook looks like one I must have!

And that wooden basket..NOW that is a thing of gorgeousness!

I would take any of those any day. Nice job, Nancy. Wasn't your first swap cool, yasou?

That wooden basket is amazing! I'm imagining it full of granny smiths. And lucky you, to get the jams, especially the red haven peach! Takes me back to my youth! That cookbook looks like it'd be an interesting read too!

Catherine

Oly, how are you going to display yours?

In my house. I'm coming down right now to get it. DH will be VERY jealous when he sees it and hopefully will no longer roll his eyes when I saw 'swap time'!

Trying to see if one of those is RobinKate's jars....

Having been the consumer of some of Nancy's canned goods, I know what you've got there! Thank you Nancy for further helping suck in my friend to the Dark Side of the forum

FYI: Oly used to can. Maybe we can start her again, y'all think?

We all have similar tastes:) the basket is priceless:) the whole package is wonderful..But Red Riding Hood never had it so good..as that basket:)

Oh, I love, love, love the basket. Nancy, do you know what kind of wood it is, whatever it is, it's beautiful.

Your jams look good and I've looked at that cookbook, next time I am going to buy it.

Did I say I love the basket.

Wonderful package, Nancy!

How come I never see anything like that basket when I shop? I must be going to the wrong places. It's a winner. I think I will change my name from Pam to Jam because I love it so much and those look heavenly. I want a slice of the cake on the cover of that cook book.

Jam

We saw the same wooden bowls at our local Abbot Kinney Street Fair. I went back at the end of the fair to buy one, but they had sold out of inventory - what a great find!

Great selection of jams - I think I would really enjoy pear jam, even though I've never had it - but I do love pears.

The cookbook must be great - Baking with Julia is one of my all time favorite cookbooks, and I was unaware the Dorie Greenspan had written it. I look forward to seeing the recipes that you will share.

Lars

The preserves look wonderful.

A wooden basket! That is so darn cool. I just love it. I am also looking forward to recipes.
Enjoy, Yasou! Nice picks, Nancy.

Whoa!! on the wooden basket! Amazing find Nancy. Quick Oly - hide your goodies before EJ comes over!

The basket is just the greatest. I want one too. I can't wait for recipes from the cookbook it looks wonderful. The jams are beautiful as well and I'll bet they taste as good as they look.

Enjoy Oley! Great job Nancy!

Tracey

Mighty fine choices Nancy! I saw crafted wooden bowls and baskets last week in NC, it was really really hard not to buy one. They were very beautiful. Lucky Oly.

Nancy that is the most beautiful wooden basket I've ever seen. I would have bought one for me too!

What a fab swap box!!

Oly I know you'll enjoy it all! You lucky duck!!

That's a beautiful basket!! The baking book sounds wonderful!! Great swap box!!

That wooden basket is beyond beautiful, so unique. I'll be on the lookout for them in my area. Hopefully somebody talented lives in my area.

The book is now on my Christmas wish list. And I bet those jams are delicious, Oly.

Nancy, that is just a wonderful package. Absolutely wonderful. Enjoy it, oly.

Oh Nancy - that basket - incredible.

Everything looks so wonderful - what a classy looking cookbook.

Oly, enjoy those jams - if there's any left!

Stacy

This is great introduction to forum swaps for you Oly. The basket is lovely, and I like the idea of all the tips for each recipe in your new book. I probably wouldn't want to share a lot of the jams either, but since there is only one other person in my household, I would.

Enjoy it all Oly. Nice, nice, nice choices Nancy.

Lee

Oly....I was like that my first swap too....still am a bit!That bowl is really one of a kind, what are you going to do with it? The book looks really gorgeous, good job Nancy.

janet

Here's a funny, I was looking at the picture of the wonderful goodies, when my DH walked by. I called him over to look at that bowl, knowing he'd really appreciate what a fine piece of craftmanship it is, and what did he say? "Can you eat it?" From the angle he was looking at the computer screen, he thought someone had made that bowl out of bread dough or something, and baked it. When I laughed and said nooo, of course you can't eat it unless you're a beaver, he realised it was wooden. It's beautiful, and that cookbook looks good enough to eat, too! You definately need to enjoy those jams all for yourself.

Sally

What a wonderful swap!
That basket is to die for!
I could go for some jam right about now and I'll be looking forward to some recipes from that book as I love to bake too!
Enjoy your goodies!
Deanna

Nancy,
My youngest son discovered the apricot jam in the refrig last night, (I tried to hide it behind last night's left overs) He sat down at the table with a spoon and had at it! You should have seen the sparkle in his eye as he took the first bite.. and the second, and third. Great stuff!!

Lori - right now I'm just trying to protect my basket from Jessica - she left a mencing message on my phone yesterday. "Lucky your not home right now, or I'd be right down to get that bowl!!"

Thanks again Nancy!!

Wow, Nancy, that's a great basket, it's just beautiful. Having been the recipient of some of your jam, I can vouch for those too.

Yasou, you're gonna have to hide that jam.

Annie

oh, lucky you! The natural woodgrain on that basket is really beautiful!! Enjoy all your wonderful goodies!!

Oly, I can just picture your son eating jam straight from the jar...LOL. I'm glad he liked it.

You tell Jessica to keep her hands off that basket!
BTW the wood is cedar which is why it has the nice grain. The guy that made it actually goes out and gets the cedar from the wet areas where it grows around her. There are lots a craftsmen who work with cedar around here, making the furniture that many like in their log homes.

Nancy

Outstanding swap choices, Nancy! You done good!

Love the wood basket, so unique. I've been known to sample Trixie's and Robin's jam straight from the jar when I opened their packages. Cookbook sounds fantastic!

Lucky you, Oly!

MMMmmm... now that is one tasty package! I would be eating the jam straight from the jar too :)

Great cookbook - I volunteer to be your official taster. Seriously. And that basket is *very cool*. I can see bread or fruit in there already.

Nice job, Nancy.

OMG-- that basket is incredible ! I can see why you couldn't buy just one , Nancy .

Lucky you Oly-- Red Haven's have such a "Peachy" taste-- enjoy the rest too -- if you can get them away from the son !

Cookbook looks good enough to eat too .

Okay, here's another OMG - drooling over that basket!!!!!! Nancy, you did a fabulous job.

Nancy,
Just wanted to show you what I woke up to this AM when I went to the refrig to sneak a spoonful of apricot jam.
SOMEONE had beaten me to it!! What until my son gets home!!! (Next time I'll have to hide it better)

Oly

Guess I should have posted the pic!!

Oh, that basket is to die for! LOL that the jam is almost gone already!

Nancy does a great job of swapping! Hope your "first" was good for you Oly! It sure appears that it was!

Linda

Dang. The preserved goodies are as good as gone already. And Nancy and I had the same taste in cookbooks for our baker swap partners - shall I just say Great Minds Think Alike??

So the only thing left I can lay claim to is that GORGEOUS wooden basket. However, it sounds like I'll have to fight Jessy for it. Which I am fully prepared to do. I'm 6' tall - how tall is Jessy? I'm thinking leg wrestling, which I will win, or perhaps just a plain ol' knock down. It would be worth it for that basket!

Yeah, I can take 'er. Pretty sure.

I know the homemade jams will be great, I will be looking for a shared recipe from the cookbook...I love to bake. But.....that bowl/basket is sooooo cool!! I love it! I may be mistaken, but, I think I saw that bowl in one of Nancy's pics of her swap.....I think it had apples in it. Great swap box Nancy! I know for sure Oly will enjoy it all.

David

David, you don't miss a thing! LOL... The picture I took of the lobsters had my wood basket in it, filled with apples. I love to give things I would want myself and that just proves it. Mine is still setting on my table with apples in it. I actually never gave it a thought.

Nancy

What a great box of goodies. There is something about homemade apricot jam that makes it disappear fast. That basket is beautiful, it looks like the artist really allows each piece of wood follow its natural shape.

-Robin

Can you say OINK!! The Red Haven Peach Jam is history!

Soooooooo.. GOOD!!

Oly

That basket is beautiful!! You will LOVE the cookbook! Marcia (ColoLady) sent me the same book in this swap! I have made several items from the book and my "testers" gave many thumbs up on each item! (No photos posted yet -promise to post recipes/photos next week) Nancy, great selections! Oly, happy baking!!!