I have wonderful friends who pack peaches for an organic grower here in the Valley. The grower comps them boxes of “thirds”–peaches with bird damage, split pits, bruised, etc. Perhaps not beautiful from every angle, but still delicious and perfect for cooking. Anyway, my friends had more boxes than they could deal with and gave three boxes to me! Score! Have a look at my bounty:
I decided I could make lots of peachy things (including daiquiris!), and decided to start with some pie filling. Won’t a freshly-baked peach pie be spectacular on a snowy day?! I tackled the peeling and pitting first. Peeling is easier when peaches are dropped into boiling water for a minute or two and then placed into cold water. The skins tend to slip right off. Some people score a small x into the skin of each peach before boiling to help the process, but I’m too lazy to do that and have never had trouble with just the boiling water-cold water thang.
After peaches are peeled, assemble ingredients. Here’s what’s needed for each future peach pie; recipe from The Prairie Homestead Blog:
- 5 cups peeled, sliced peaches
- 3 Tablespoons arrowroot powder OR cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons real vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup (or more to taste) sugar or other granulated natural sweetener
- 2 Tablespoons pure lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- Pinch of salt
Mix everything thoroughly in a bowl.
Pour into labelled freezer bags and voila! Freeze until you need them.
When you’re ready, defrost the frozen filling, place in a crust and bake 25 minutes at 375F. Or make a cobbler! Or a crisp! Or defrost, heat and serve over ice cream! Or bake into cinnamon rolls! Oh, your house is gonna smell good this winter, and your people will be so happy you froze these yummy peaches for them! I just love baking for others. How ’bout YOU?
Somethin' Yummy 