A business that grew out of a stand at the Galesburg Farmer’s Market will soon open a store in the heart of historic Seminary Street.
Malley Farms, a locally-owned cottage food producer featuring everything from unique jams and jellies, to salsas and savory condiments, will lease a soon-to-be-vacant building directly north of Landmark Cafe & Creperie on South Seminary Street.
It’s a career change of tunes for owner Nikki Malley, who’s spent the past 19 years as Knox College, most recently as associate professor of music, chairperson of the music department and director of jazz studies.
“It’s a total career change for me,” Malley said. “It started as a hobby that I was weirdly passionate about.
“It really started as having fun at the farmer’s market. I didn’t realize at the time I was doing six or seven years of market research towards a business that is now coming to fruition. And I found out the more I did it, the more I liked it.”
Malley Farms takes possession of 54 S. Seminary St. — currently occupied by Orion Renewables — on Nov. 1. The first step is to begin installation of a new commercial kitchen that will fill two-thirds of the building.
An evolving retail store front will open around the Christmas holidays, and Malley anticipates to be fully open by the spring.
The focus of Malley Farm has been on jams, jellies and some condiments.
“Most of my items are a slight twist of something you’re already familiar with,” Malley said. “So a fruit you are familiar with, with a spice you didn’t think to pair with it.”
Popular flavors this summer were blood orange and amaretto and blackberry mojito. And there are herbal flavors like peach basil and blueberry ginger.
“Strawberry margarita might be the all time best seller,” Malley said. “The one that’s currently a best seller is the blueberry raspberry brown sugar jam. And weirdly, my pickled carrots have become a runaway hit.
“I’m not trying to duplicate simple, wonderful flavors, because there are so many people who do them well. And I can’t compete with Smucker’s prices, so I’m going to try and come up with flavors you like and know, and add something a little different to it.”
Options for jams and jellies unlimited
Malley said she looks forward to teaching customers the versatility of her products.
“I know people will say, what do you do with this?” Malley said. “People might say, ‘I don’t use jam that much.’ The culinary side of me loves to use things in different ways. You can take a hamburger and all of a sudden make it really fancy.
“One of my favorites is using apple butter as a glaze on a roast pork tenderloin. You can caramelize it with some onions, and it’s delicious. Or I’ll use my sweet chili sauce on fried shrimp.”
A store front in Seminary Street Historic Downtown District is the perfect location for Malley Farms, according to Malley.
“Seminary Street is the commerce, kind of boutiquey heart of Galesburg,” she said. I connected with Seminary Street immediately when I was a freshman at Knox College.
“When I started imagining this about five years ago, I always saw it as a store front on Seminary Street. No matter how I thought about it, the image in my head was always there. So it’s a little surreal for this to be happening.”
Longtime Landmark Crepe & Creperie owner Phil Dickinson said he believes Malley Farms is an ideal fit for Seminary Street.
“We are thrilled to be able to welcome Malley Farms to our Seminary Street family of merchants,” Dickinson said. “We believe their offerings and mission fits perfectly with the existing lineup of merchants.
“In a street already known for great food offerings, Nikki and her team will fill a niche that is both needed and wanted by both the food merchants already in the area as well as providing a treasure trove of locally-made goods.”
‘I really want it to feel like a Galesburg space’
Other local vendors also will be able to collaborate with Malley Farms.
“What I’d like I to be is a retail space that features obviously my products, but also collaboratively kind of features other local makers, whether those are artists, or crafts folks other people who are doing food products,” she said. “I really want it to feel like a Galesburg space.”
Malley said she’s excited about the next chapter in her life.
“I going to do what you’re not supposed to do, and that’s to walk away from an academic job and try something completely new,” she said. “So, it’s a big leap of faith, but it’s something I love doing, and the more I do it, the more I love doing it.
“I wouldn’t trade my experiences (at Knox) for anything in the world. But this is something I’m passionate about, and I think I’m young enough that I have enough time to really try to do something different. I didn’t do it just to be interesting, but I think people who have second and third chapters are interesting.”
Previously: From beer battered tenderloins to scorpion tails: New bar and grill coming to downtown.
