National Eat A Peach Day, August 22

donna

Brev. Brig. Gen'l
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Since I will be away this weekend, thought I go on and post about peaches for National Eat A Peach Day.

The peach originated in China and has been cultivated for 1000s of years. The peach tree is considered the tree of life and peaches are symbols of immortality and unity.

Peaches traveled to Persia and were discovered by Alexander the Great. Greek and Romans enjoyed them. The Romans cultivated them and transported them North to other European countries in their Empire.

Spaniards brought them to South America. The French brought them to Louisiana. The English brought them to Jamestown.

Columbus brought them to America on his 2nd and 3rd voyages.

However when I eat a peach I always think of Georgie Peaches. Peaches were originally planted in St. Augustine in the 1500s.. Franciscan Monks then took them to St Simon and Cumberland Islands off Georgia . By the mid-1770s Cherokee Indians were cultivating them in Georgia.

Raphael Moses, a Georgia planter, of Columbus, Georgia started to market peaches . He is credited with being the first to ship and sell peaches to markets outside of Georgia. The first Georgia peaches were shipped to New York between 1858 and 1860.

Georgia earned the "peach state" designation during the three decades after the Civil War.

Have a peach on National Peach Day, August 22.

Information from:

http://gapeaches.org/about-us/rich-history-of-ga-peach/
 
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Peaches are my favorite fruit! Mom, granny, great-grandma - everybody would can peaches about now. So very good - and comforting to see those bright orange rows of peaches for winter.



http://barbolian.com/bfblog/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Peaches.jpg

Elberta peaches were very common - we have a couple trees of them - but there are a whole lot of different varieties now! The Elberta isn't as sweet and will keep well. Cling peaches we pickled! They were so good - we'd run out of them sooner than anything else.
 
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I am in possession of a peach! :laugh: I'm going to round up a few of its cousins and make a pie. Peach pie in August is truly heaven. :hug: Have had very good results with this recipe, which is found also in Taste of Home:

Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
  • 4-1/2 cups sliced peeled peaches
  • Pastry for double-crust pie (9 inches)
  • 3 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon butter
Directions
  • 1. In a large bowl, combine sugars; add peaches and toss gently. Cover and let stand for 1 hour. Line a 9-in. pie plate with bottom pastry; trim even with edge. Set aside. Drain peaches, reserving juice.
  • 2. In a small saucepan, combine the cornstarch, nutmeg, cinnamon and salt; gradually stir in reserved juice. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from the heat; stir in lemon juice and butter. Gently fold in peaches. Pour into crust.
  • 3. Roll out remaining pastry; make a lattice crust. Trim, seal and flute edges. Cover edges loosely with foil. Bake at 400° for 50-60 minutes or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Remove foil. Cool on a wire rack. Yield: 6-8 servings.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/peach-pie
 
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Another one we've used for a while is spiced cling peaches, from the Ball canning book:

Honey Spiced Peaches
Makes about 3 (32 oz) quarts


http://www.freshpreserving.com/recipes/honey-spiced-peaches
We used to make them all the time but we would take fresh peaches and slice and soak them in grain neutral spirits for about a week, them make the spiced peaches.
P.S. grain neutral spirits is 180 proof alcohol.
 
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We used to make them all the time but we would take fresh peaches and slice and soak them in grain neutral spirits for about a week, them make the spiced peaches.
P.S. grain neutral spirits is 180 proof alcohol.

Brandied peaches were also a favorite. We didn't have them too much when I was young - brandy wasn't cheap! - but it was really good when we did make it.
 
The thing I missed most on my first overseas deployment were fresh peaches.

If we are talking about a peach cobbler or peach pie hot from the oven, then let's not forget the homemade vanilla ice cream to go with it.

I grew up with fresh peaches baked with brown sugar, butter, and a dash of cinnamon.
 
Peaches are my favorite fruit! Mom, granny, great-grandma - everybody would can peaches about now. So very good - and comforting to see those bright orange rows of peaches for winter.

Expired Image Removed

Many of us had the same experiences growing up.
 
Peaches are the bomb! (I know I just made a display of my age. Ask me if I care. No...on second thought, don't ask. I'll just say "No.") Even those in 303 cans are pretty fine when the snow is deep and there's no other fruit to be found anywhere. But a peach off a tree in mid to late summer is a genuine gift from God.
 
We used to make them all the time but we would take fresh peaches and slice and soak them in grain neutral spirits for about a week, them make the spiced peaches.
P.S. grain neutral spirits is 180 proof alcohol.
That doesn't sound too neutral to me!:giggle:180 proof, hoowheee!
 
Alas I have no peaches. Being a Georgia boy I do remember buying them at roadside stands and eating them in the car; everybody made a mess with all that juice. They are one of the few fruits I like cooked.

I shall listen to some Allman Brothers to commemorate the date. I saw them at the Atlanta Pop Festival the summer they released their first album and we ate peaches and cantaloupe we bought from a local farmer who figured he'd cash in on the crowd but got stuck in the traffic jam and had to sell cheap as it was all going bad (very hot that day). Mighty fine peaches they were.
 
Alas I have no peaches. Being a Georgia boy I do remember buying them at roadside stands and eating them in the car; everybody made a mess with all that juice. They are one of the few fruits I like cooked.

I shall listen to some Allman Brothers to commemorate the date. I saw them at the Atlanta Pop Festival the summer they released their first album and we ate peaches and cantaloupe we bought from a local farmer who figured he'd cash in on the crowd but got stuck in the traffic jam and had to sell cheap as it was all going bad (very hot that day). Mighty fine peaches they were.
Unlike you, JW, peaches are the one fruit I like best fresh and uncooked. Peach pie and cobbler, well you can have my share. Just give them to me in their natural form. (But they are nice with raspberry sauce!:D)
 
I'm not a huge fan of peaches- I've been told that fresh peaches practically drip with juice and are absolutely delicious- but most of the peaches I've tried have been watery or mushy.

I do however, enjoy peach pie! Here's a recipe I found online. Apparently, it's the best peach pie recipe ever.

Grandmother’s Pie Crust Recipe
For 2 crust pie:

2 C. all purpose flour
½ tsp. salt
¾ C. shortening
1/3 C. ice cold water

Sift flour and salt together. Cut in shortening with a fork until crumbly. Sprinkle water slowly into mixture. Combine ingredients with hands; working quickly to form a ball. Divide into 2 parts, trying not to handle it too much. With floured hands, turn onto floured surface and roll into a circle, approximately 14” diameter. With a knife, cut decorative slits in the top crust. Fold crusts into ¼’s to easily transfer to pie pans.

Grandmother’s Peach Pie
9 peaches – peeled and thinly sliced
1 ½ C. sugar
8 dashes cinnamon
5 dashes nutmeg
1 dash salt
1 tsp. vanilla
3 Tbsp. flour



http://www.skiptomylou.org/2011/08/23/peach-pie/
 
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