Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Palisades Peach Pie


Oh joy of joys, Colorado Palisades peaches have been flooding the markets.  Since there's a limit to how much peach juice a girl can have rolling down her chin and elbows from eating them straight from the market, there's always peach dishes galore to experiment with.  I'll do the Colorado Peach recap logic here for those who may have missed my peach message last year.  Usually bigger = GMO which = cardboard.  However, Colorado peach big = sugar =delightful. Therefore, in this case bigger=better.  I feel bad for little bitty grocery store peaches really because it's not even a fair fight....

Fruit pies with a bit of reduced sugar is the perfect way to highlight these beauties.  And if you already know the easiest way to peel a peach, ignore me for a sec. 

If you drop a peach into boiling water for about 15-30 secs and then immediately into ice water (to stop the cooking) ...

The peel just slides right off.  Seems like a pain to boil water and fill a bowl with ice water, but peels sliding right off the peaches makes up for that little bit of effort up front.



And while you could just throw a crust on top, it's fall and leaves are everywhere. Including peach pies. 



Short and sweet post I know but I promised to get this recipe up for my aunt almost two weeks ago.  Yikes.  And of course there is no crust recipe because as previously revealed,  me+ flour all over the kitchen = irritated. 


Peach Pie
from the Joy of Cooking Cookbook

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 425°F

Peel, pit, and slice 1/4 inch thick:
2-1/2 pounds peaches
Measure 5 cups and combine with:
1/2 to 3/4 cup sugar
3 to 3-1/2 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca or cornstarch
3 tablespoons strained fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/8 teaspoon salt

Let stand for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour into the bottom crust and dot with:
2 to 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Brush the overhanging edge of the bottom crust with cold water. Cover with the top crust, then seal the edge, trim, and crimp or flute. Cut steam vents.

Lightly brush the top of the pie with:
Milk or cream
Sprinkle with:
2 teaspoons sugar

Bake the pie for 30 minutes. Slip a baking sheet beneath it, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (175°C), and bake until thick juices bubble through the vents, 25 to 35 minutes more. Let cool completely on a rack before serving.