The Peach Post!

Today it's raining and we're neeeevvveerrr going to be done with harvest, it seems, so I thought I'd take this opportunity to post about my peachy endeavors of late. :)  WARNING: THIS POST IS PEACH-PACKED, AND IS VERY LENGTHY. IT MAY INDUCE SUDDEN CRAVINGS FOR ALL THINGS PEACH! Read with caution!

Who loves peaches out there!?

It is totally peach season right now and I am loving it! And to think I went most of my life without knowing I liked peaches at all?! Now, it's probably my favorite summer fruit. There's really almost nothing better than a fresh peach, perfectly ripe. Tastes like summer and sunshine. Can't beat it.

This love of peaches inspired me to purchase a case of the sunny golden fruit in my last Bountiful Baskets order. I've been working my way through eating, cooking with, and preserving them ever since! Read all about how I've been putting my peaches to use! Oh, and just try not to start humming that song by the Presidents of the United States of America as you read this!

What?! You don't know that song? You haven't seen the video? Lucky you...

Pretty delightful, right?

I was not attacked by ninjas at any point in my peachy adventures, but they're not gone yet, so there's still time! I'll have to re-watch the video to pick up some of the Presidents' defense techniques.

Anyway... moving on.

Peach Pie 
The very first thing I did the day I brought the peaches home was make a peach pie. Lattice-top peach pie has become a once-a-year tradition for me during peach season. Last year, I had Stennie here to help and give me plenty of much-needed pie making tips. We referred to a giant cookbook I have called The New Best Recipe, from the editors of Cooks Illustrated, for that pie and many other baking endeavors. This cookbook is always right and is loaded with tips and information. We came to lovingly call it The Cooking Bible. This year, I wanted to try something different. I found a different crust recipe to use and then researched online for a filling recipe that I thought would do great. Here's how it turned out:

Lattice top peach pie.

This was the first use of the peaches from my case and to be honest, they were underripe at this point. This was a blessing in that it made them very easy to peel with a standard vegetable peeler, but not as good for cooking uses because they weren't as sweet yet. The filling recipe did not use as much sugar as other recipes, so the filling in this pie was not as sweet as one may have liked. It also didn't thicken at all. The crust was great, though. I was really happy with how the crust turned out and I'd definitely use that recipe again. All in all, it was a peach pie. I mean, come on, it would have to be pretty bad to not be excellent, right? Next time, I may refer back to The Cooking Bible for the filling recipe, though. ;)

Fiery Peach Salsa
While my peaches were still underripe, I thought it would be a good time to put them through the slice, dice, and cooking process of canning them into a salsa. I have made and canned peach salsa before, but I was ready to try a new recipe. I found one in one of my many canning books, this time from Southern Living's book Little Jars, Big Flavors. I knew for peaches, trusting a southern cookbook would be a great start! I used the recipe called "Fiery Peach Salsa," only I had to adapt it just a tad because I didn't have any habaneros on hand. I just used more jalapenos. This recipe was really easy and didn't take a ton of ingredients- pretty much just peaches, peppers, onion, and cider vinegar plus a few other things. I did all my dicing before leaving for work in the morning, then when I got home, I was ready to can. Super simple.

Cooking down the peach salsa a bit before packing it into jars.

 I had a bit left over that didn't fit in a jar, so I enjoyed it with some chips as an afternoon snack. Like many canned salsa recipes, you can taste the cider vinegar and the acidity, but it wasn't bad. It was actually not spicy at all. As a sidenote, I think jalapenos are becoming less spicy all the time. I used four in this recipe and I'd classify it even less spicy than "mild." This would be a really great marinade for fish, chicken, or pork!

Peachy pepper salsa- finished product in half-pint jars!

Peach Bellini Dessert Sauce
Next up, another canning recipe. Again, this one was SUPER easy. Just peel and dice up a whole bunch of peaches and add some lemon zest, lemon juice, and... CHAMPAGNE! Then, just cook it down for a while, and process in hot water bath. I didn't know if I'd even get that far because I kept having visions of dunking my head into the simmering peach reduction--the smell was soooooo good! Jeff and I opened a jar that very night and had some on our ice cream. Delicious! It also made an appearance the next morning with my yogurt for breakfast, and at lunch time on buscuits and... This stuff is the best! Summer in a jar.

Top: Simmering the peaches.
Bottom: After they've cooked down, just prior to filling jars.

Peach Bellini Dessert Sauce- finished product. YUM!

Whiskey-Peach Upside Down Skillet Cake
It was time for another baked peach treat! After a Pinterest search for "peach cake," I found several recipes I ended up combining to make what I'm calling Whiskey-Peach Upside Down Skillet Cake. This may have been one of the most delicious dessert items I've ever made. It turned out absolutely perfect. I think I could have eaten the entire thing on night one. I made this in my cast iron skillet and started by making an easy caramel sauce with butter and brown sugar. Then I arranged my peeled and sliced peaches in the pan and splashed some whiskey over the whole thing before pouring the cake batter over top and baking. It inverted out onto a plate nicely:

Whiskey-Peach Upside Down Skillet Cake

Again, phenomenal with ice cream. Best eaten warm right out of the oven. With the heavy caramel sauce, I think this one would be really good as a fall or holiday treat, if one could find ripe peaches... Just tasted very decadent. So good.

Peach-Raspberry Pie Filling
This one is a long story. I'm going to spare you the details and just say that this was a recipe I had intended on canning but the magazine I was following had a mis-print, so I had purchased the wrong ingredient. Turns out there's a big difference between regular clearjel and instant clearjel. They're NOT interchangeable, and you should NOT can with instant clearjel, which is what I now have four cans of. *humph* In the end, I made the filling as the recipe suggested, but packed it into freezer bags instead.

The pie filling before adding in the fruit. 

 The Instant Clearjel lives up to its name as it jels INSTANTLY and is VERY thick. It looked and felt like stirring petroleum jelly...

After adding fruit into the filling.

 It was impossible not to crush the raspberries when trying to get an even stir of the filling. I also don't think a person would need to pre-cook the peaches if intending to freeze or use this filling recipe right away. I think you'd cook the sugar and water just to melt it, then add in the instant clearjel, then stir in raw fruit. Anyway...They look pretty, right?

Four freezer bags full of extra thick Peach-Raspberry pie filling. 

 They froze for about a week before I made my first pie with one of these pre-made filling bags. This past weekend, with Katie, Josh, and Brandon here was the perfect time to thaw out a bag of the filling and try it in a pie. Everyone really liked it, and I did too, but I could pick up on the extra flavor of the Instant Clearjel. I think if I follow this filling recipe again intending for immediate use or for freezing, I'll use less of the Instant Clearjel. No one else seemed to notice, however. It's another case of the baker being the harshest critic. ;) Overall, I thought it was really tasty and so handy to have a ready-made filling all set to go in the freezer!

Does anybody know what time it is? har har har...

 Turns out I'm not a graceful pie slicer, so this doesn't look photo-perfect, but that's OK because it tastes great!

Just look at that delicious pie... 

 As a sidenote, anyone know any great uses for instant clearjel?


"Summer Mess" Fresh Peach and Veggie Salsa and Spicy Beef Tacos
After so many sweet uses for peaches, I was craving something a bit more savory. On a whim, I plugged "peaches and beef" into my Pinterest. There wasn't much. People seem to think I meant to type "peaches and pork," as there were TONS of recipes for peaches and pork. But no, I have a freezer full of beef and I'd like to use it, thankyouverymuch! So, when I saw "Spicy Beef Tacos with Summer Mess" I thought it might be worth a try! I mean, it's fresh salsa with peaches, tomatoes, corn, jalapenos, onion, cilantro and lime juice--all things that I love--slopped over grilled flank steak, which I also love! I didn't follow the recipe for the beef exactly, opting to use a simple spice rub I had on hand rather than the barbecue sauce recipe they used. It turned out great! I skipped the taco shell and just sliced my steak up and piled the salsa on top. It was all great the next day too as sort of a salad bowl with spinach and a side of cottage cheese. This was so simple and so good! Also, a perfectly balanced recipe that features beef in a healthy diet. Excellent for a beef-fueled run! :)

Grilled steak with peach "summer mess" salsa and spinach. Delicious!

What are your favorite peach recipes? Do peaches give you a warm and fuzzy feeling?

Image source: www.fruitycuties.com

Thanks for hanging on through the entire peachy post of power! Have a peachy day!