It’s August, and you know what that means! It’s time to stock up on delectable peaches. Most local orchards offer pick-your-own peaches, or you can take the easy way out and buy a basket or two in their store. (That’s what I do!)
Peaches are excellent canned or frozen for winter baking, so make sure to ask your local orchard if they offer bushels of seconds — these are peaches that aren’t pretty enough to sell at full price, but they are still perfectly fine for preserving.
Here are some places in Chester County that are selling local peaches (For addresses and contact information, visit www.eatlocalphilly.com):
Farmer’s Daughter, Spring City
Farmers’ Market at Great Valley, Malvern
Highland Orchards, West Chester
Phoenixville Farmers’ Market, Phoenixville
Vollmecke Orchards, Coatesville
West Chester Grower’s Market, West Chester
How to tell if a peach is ripe (compliments of the Highland Orchards monthly newsletter): As a peach ripens, the part facing the sun gets a reddish blush and the part not exposed to the sun turns from green to yellow (or to white for a white peach). Avoid very firm or hard peaches with a distinctly green background color. They are probably immature and won’t ripen properly if picked.
How to pick a peach (again from the Highland Orchards newsletter):
A peach is softer than an apple, so it is important to use the palm of your hand rather than the fingertips. This allows you to be more gentle and less likely to cause bruising. Grab the peach firmly and pull it straight off the branch. If they don’t pull off easily, leave them on the tree to ripen.
Peach Pake
I’ve already made this several times. I double it and put it in a 13-by-9 pan (It’s that good). Sometimes I throw in some blueberries with the peaches. Yum!
1 stick butter
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour (you can sub half whole wheat pastry flour if you want a more wholesome treat)
1 cup sugar (It was so sweet the first time I made it that I reduced the sugar, but you can use more if you wish.)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups whole milk
3 cups sliced fresh peaches
1 cup blueberries
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place butter in a 13-by-9-inch casserole dish and put in the oven until butter is melted. Then remove from the oven. (Don’t let it burn — not that I’d know anything about that…)
In a medium-sized bowl, mix together the dry ingredients. Then whisk in the milk until smooth.
Pour batter over melted butter, then spread the cut fruit over batter.
Bake until the top is golden brown and bubbly, about 50 to 60 minutes.
Serve warm or at room temperature. Refrigerate the leftovers.
I wish I had pictures, but it disappears so fast I’ve never had the chance!
Jo-Lynne is the founder of Eat Local Philly (eatlocalphilly.com). When she’s not seeking out new sources for local foods, she is probably elbow-deep in bread dough or musing on weighty topics such as fashion and reality TV on her personal blog, Musings of a Housewife.
