There’s more than big trout at Blackhawk Fly Fishing: they also tempt your taste buds!

End of the Line

July 2025

By Polly Dean

Abby Jackson grew up on the family farm in North Georgia, where she and her husband John manage Blackhawk Fly Fishing. Her favorite place on the farm was the kitchen, where she was able to express her creativity in developing tasty dishes. Mentored in the kitchen at an early age by her grandmother, Abby developed a love for creating flavors and appetizing gourmet products.

After Abby completed college, she worked as a national sales manager for a company in New York for many years. Fortunately, she realized her passion was cooking and food. She and husband John opened Blackhawk Fly Fishing in 1996. Often preparing meals for guests that came to fish on the Soque River, it didn’t go unnoticed that Abby did have a knack for serving up some extraordinary dishes.

In the kitchen with Abby J. Photo by Polly Dean.

Her passion for creating new flavors fueled her to start her own line of products – Abby J’s Gourmet. Her “Field to Fork” Sweet Fire Pickles won the “Flavor of Georgia” in 2016. She has authored her first cook book, Abby J’s Farmstyle Living Cookbook, was co-founder of Southern Farms & Garden Magazine, is active in Georgia Grown program, hosts the cooking show Cooking with Abby J for Windstream and is host of What’s in Season for Ingles Markets.

Abby J’s products are made from fresh farm-sourced ingredients that include sauces, salsas, and pickled vegetables such as okra. Her sauces and salsas are sweet, savory or downright spicey. Salsas include ingredients such as black beans and herbs, peaches, chipotle, garlic, and jalapeno  or habanero peppers. And, of course, her Sweet Fire Pickles are still a staple. I had the pleasure of sampling her newest product, Candied Jalapennos, a delicious blend of sweet and heat!

Abby J’s is carried throughout the southeast, such as Ingles Markets, Kroger Super Markets in the Georgia-Grown sections, Striplings, Jaemore Farms and dozens of specialty markets throughout Georgia.

Check out Abby’s website for more information on her products and where they can be purchased, along with some tasty recipes she shares for sauces, main and side dishes and much more.