JJ
LOCALLY GROWN by Connie Cherba
TRAPPISTINE CARAMELS
SIMPLY SWEET
The Abbey of Our Lady of the Mississippi perches on a wooded bluff overlooking the Mississippi River south of Dubuque . The main building of the Abbey was once the home of the Stampfers , a family many associate with their downtown Dubuque department store . Today , 17 Roman Catholic nuns call the Abbey their home . The Sisters are Cistercian or Trappistine nuns who , according to their website , “ follow Jesus Christ through a life of prayer , silence , simplicity , and ordinary work .”
The work performed by this talented community of women is the sweetest work
40 ❖ Julien ’ s Journal imaginable – the Sisters are expert candy makers and support themselves through the sale of Trappistine Creamy Caramels and other sweet delicacies produced in their candy factory and sold by mail and in gift shops throughout the Midwest and the United States .
The Monastery was founded in 1964 , and less than a year later the Sisters were busy cooking and selling caramels . “ The caramels are cooked from a recipe that came to us from our Sisters in Wrentham , Massachusetts , who founded us ,” said Sister Kathleen O ’ Neill , general manager of the candy making operation . “ They got it from a Greek
Sr . Anna O ’ Meara cutting a slab of caramel . Photos contributed by Deb Otto confectioner in Providence , Rhode Island , who gave it to them because he heard they needed something to support themselves .”
The successful candy making enterprise soon branched out when the nuns began coating vanilla caramels with milk or dark chocolate . Today , the Sisters annually produce some 70 tons of chocolatecoated caramels along with plain vanilla and chocolate caramels . Not satisfied with limiting themselves to caramels , the order introduced Irish ( green ) mints in 1980 and Swiss ( chocolate ) mints in 1997 .
With the advent of internet sales , orders soared , and the candy making operation soon outgrew its building . In response to their growing customer base , the Sisters built a new , state-of the art candy factory and moved into the facility in August 2002 . They also added Hazelnut Meltaways ( a blend of chocolate and hazelnuts ), truffles , and caramel ice cream toppings to their candy lineup .
The Sisters gather seven times a day to praise God , but when they ’ re not praying and singing , nearly all the nuns are busy working in the candy house . “ They work from 8:15 a . m . until 11:30 a . m ., five days a week , from September through December ,” said Sheryl Mosby , office manager . The workload lessens in the off season .
The Sisters ’ major candy season begins September 1 , and nearly 90 % of their annual sales occur in the fall months leading up to Christmas . Much of the rest of their work – except cooking and laundry – has
Today , the Sisters annually produce some 70 tons of chocolate-coated caramels along with plain vanilla and chocolate caramels .