peaches

I noticed on Facebook last week that my friend Sara had done some peaches - not canned, but ready for the freezer instead. Canning is still a little intimidating for me (I did applesauce once but in my mother-in-law's kitchen - I'm not ready to go solo yet!). I have done strawberry freezer jam before so I figured I could handle freezer peaches.

I picked up 1/2 bushel of peaches from Well's Orchard on Friday (I've heard they are the best - $16 and there were about 60 peaches in there). I let them sit out for a couple of days and yesterday, I got through about 2/3 of those. Here are the directions I used in case you want to give it a try.

The peeling wasn't too bad. Here's the method I used: Dip the fruit in boiling water for 30 to 45 seconds. Remove peaches from the boiling water using a slotted spoon and put into a large bowl or pot of cold water and ice for several minutes. The skins came off pretty easily after that.

Here are the directions Sara sent me:

1) Peel the skin with a sharp paring knife and all the yukky part that clings to the stone or pit.

2) Cut into bite size pieces and place into 1 qt glass measuring container.

3) Once you have one full quart, transfer to large plastic bowl so you can mix it around.

4) Add 1 TBSP fruit fresh (keeps from browning and stays fresher, longer) and anywhere from 1/4 up to 2/3 cup of sugar... depending on your taste.

5) Let it sit and "marinade" in the mixture for about 10 minutes. (This is when I get back to peeling and pitting again. A long process but you will appreciate it in the end.)

6) Pour mixture into freezer containers. Make sure you don't fill too full as they will expand during freezing.