# Peaches



## sparrowgrass (Sep 1, 2010)

I have been eating lovely orchard peaches since the middle of July--my favorite fruit.  They are about gone now, but I stopped at the orchard last weekend and bought half a bushel, and. . . . they are awful.    Mealy, dry, not much flavor.  (Like the ones you buy in the grocery store.)

They only cost $10--should I pitch them out to the chickens, or should I try to salvage them some way?  Does anyone think that they would make a decent pie, or jam or something?  Maybe with some extra flavoring, like vanilla or ginger?

Or should I just toss them out to the chickens?  I know they would enjoy them.


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## bandonjan (Sep 1, 2010)

You can try making peach butter or jam. Sometimes cooking brings out some flavor.


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## merstar (Sep 1, 2010)

Can you return them?


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## 4meandthem (Sep 1, 2010)

Try grilling a couple and drizzleing with maple or vanilla syrup.


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## mollyanne (Sep 1, 2010)

My vote is....toss 'em. That "mealy" texture and lack of flavor is probably due to temperatures while in the growth process. "Mealy" texture is what I call "pithy" but when I said that to the grocer, he looked at me like I was swearing with a lisp 

He then let me have a taste of the California peaches he had which were grrreat. That's the nicest anyone's been to me there...maybe I should "swear" more often.


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## bethzaring (Sep 1, 2010)

I'd toss them and give your chickens a treat.  Food never improves when you put by. If the peaches are awful now, they will be awful after you spend more time and money fooling with them.


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## zfranca (Sep 1, 2010)

Mealy, dry, not much flavor..It appears they were picked before reaching ripeness and kept for sometime in storage. Before giving them to the chickens, try a sauce (not sweet) to go with pork, chicken, or cornish hens.
I hope it works...I have the same problem with mangoes.


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## Uncle Bob (Sep 1, 2010)

bethzaring said:


> I'd toss them and give your chickens a treat.  Food never improves when you put by. If the peaches are awful now, they will be awful after you spend more time and money fooling with them.



*+1*


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## sparrowgrass (Sep 2, 2010)

I peeled them last night--tossed nearly half of them because they were brown and icky.  I did find a couple really tasty ones while I was peeling--guess what happened to those?

I found a recipe for peach butter, crockpotted them all night, and they taste pretty good.  I did add some citric acid to perk up the flavor, so the butter is quite tart.  I haven't canned it yet--I might add some more sugar before I do.  

Taste is ok--I don't think I wasted my time.  And the chix got all the peelings and brown ones, so they were happy.


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## vitauta (Jul 3, 2011)

sparrowgrass said:


> I have been eating lovely orchard peaches since the middle of July--my favorite fruit.  They are about gone now, but I stopped at the orchard last weekend and bought half a bushel, and. . . . they are awful.    Mealy, dry, not much flavor.  (Like the ones you buy in the grocery store.)
> 
> They only cost $10--should I pitch them out to the chickens, or should I try to salvage them some way?  Does anyone think that they would make a decent pie, or jam or something?  Maybe with some extra flavoring, like vanilla or ginger?
> 
> Or should I just toss them out to the chickens?  I know they would enjoy them.



remember this post?  peaches are my favorite, too.  i've been eating our locally grown peaches (virginia) for about two weeks now--the early varieties.  i look forward to a lovely looong peach season of untold fruit gluttony  i'm writing to remind everyone to take full advantage of their favorite fruits while they are in season and at their peak of flavor.  "september" will be here soon enough with its sorry offerings of it's mealy, tasteless remnants.


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## babetoo (Jul 3, 2011)

had a good peach for a snack a little while ago. i never buy more than two of any fruit, these days. chances of a bad one are better than a good one. two is not to many to throw away. produce buyers  for market, need to do a better job.


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## vitauta (Jul 9, 2011)

last week i bought a basket of locally grown peaches, an early variety, known for its juiciness but not for its sweetness.  they were so incredibly juicy that i had a difficult time slicing them without releasing large quantities of peach juice into my bowl.  my aha moment came when i sprinkled a small amount of splenda over the peaches to add some sweetness.  the splenda instantly melted into the peaches and juices, lending such a natural sweetness to the fruit that neither by look nor by taste, would anyone guess a sweetener was used.  i then sprinkled the splenda on some beautiful blackberries that were a bit too bitter.  wow, the berries absorbed the sweetness of the splenda and transformed into the sweetest and juiciest blackberries of memory. bye-bye sugar, heLLo splenda!


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## powerplantop (Jul 9, 2011)

The local peaches (north Louisiana) have been really good the past few weeks. We have been buying them at the farmers market form a lady who picks them after they are ripe.


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## babetoo (Jul 10, 2011)

vitauta said:


> last week i bought a basket of locally grown peaches, an early variety, known for its juiciness but not for its sweetness. they were so incredibly juicy that i had a difficult time slicing them without releasing large quantities of peach juice into my bowl. my aha moment came when i sprinkled a small amount of splenda over the peaches to add some sweetness. the splenda instantly melted into the peaches and juices, lending such a natural sweetness to the fruit that neither by look nor by taste, would anyone guess a sweetener was used. i then sprinkled the splenda on some beautiful blackberries that were a bit too bitter. wow, the berries absorbed the sweetness of the splenda and transformed into the sweetest and juiciest blackberries of memory. bye-bye sugar, heLLo splenda!


 

i am a splenda fan as well. diabetic means very low sugar. splenda does the trick for me.


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## sparrowgrass (Jul 10, 2011)

It is time to drive over to my favorite orchard!! I love the early cling peaches--they have the best flavor, but a very short season.

I actually had some GOOD strawberries last night--from WalMart, of all places.  They were very flavorful and not crunchy, like most purchased strawberries.  And only 89 cents a box!!  Too bad I didn't buy several boxes.


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## Saphellae (Jul 10, 2011)

Right now it's tomatoes and berries, asparagus... oh YUM... Ontario produce from farm stands.. the tomatoes are to die for and I have been having a sliced up tomato with salt and pepper with my breakfest for a few days now!


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## jabbur (Jul 10, 2011)

I recently picked up some peaches and blackberries.  I sliced up the peaches, threw in the blackberries and sprinkled the whole thing with sugar.  Of the 5 peaches I used, 2 were really ripe and sweet and the other 3 were not.  But once they were mixed together and the sugar added, they came alive with peachiness and were so good!  Now I want to go back to the market and get some more!


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## Rocklobster (Jul 10, 2011)

jabbur said:


> I recently picked up some peaches and blackberries. I sliced up the peaches, threw in the blackberries and sprinkled the whole thing with sugar. Of the 5 peaches I used, 2 were really ripe and sweet and the other 3 were not. But once they were mixed together and the sugar added, they came alive with peachiness and were so good! Now I want to go back to the market and get some more!


 A squeeze of lemon with that really picks things up also.


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## vitauta (Jul 10, 2011)

Saphellae said:


> Right now it's tomatoes and berries, asparagus... oh YUM... Ontario produce from farm stands.. the tomatoes are to die for and I have been having a sliced up tomato with salt and pepper with my breakfest for a few days now!



you said it, saph!  tomatoes. a tomato variety grown in virginia, "hanover" tomatoes, are in season right now.  they are like the cadillac of tomatoes here.  they are the reddest, juiciest, tastiest, tomatoiest of all tomatoes i have ever had the sublime pleasure of biting into. i too walk around with a tomato and salt shaker in my hand these days, and slice slabs of hanovers for breakfast, et al....


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## vitauta (Jul 10, 2011)

jabbur said:


> I recently picked up some peaches and blackberries.  I sliced up the peaches, threw in the blackberries and sprinkled the whole thing with sugar.  Of the 5 peaches I used, 2 were really ripe and sweet and the other 3 were not.  But once they were mixed together and the sugar added, they came alive with peachiness and were so good!  Now I want to go back to the market and get some more!




yess, more, you need more peaches, cantaloupe, berries, tomatoes--more!  this is my mantra for july....  (i'm just sayin')


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## vitauta (Jul 16, 2011)

today i found the sweetest nectarines in the modern western world! they go by the name of sugar tree, and are a firm, white flesh, bursting-with-juice wonder! luckily, i impulsively ate one of these babies while checking out the rest of the produce at this roadside stand, and bought four baskets (all i could afford) on the spot!! the juicy sweetness of this fruit will bring an involuntary, huge goofy smile to your face--guaranteed! god, i love virginia orchards this time of year....


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## vitauta (Aug 7, 2011)

all summer i have been buying peaches from local farmers markets--most supermarkets in this area were carrying very little local produce and no virginia peaches or nectarines. this week my supermarket is selling virginia peaches for 99c per pound!! kroger, you rock! i will be eating 2lbs. of peaches (or however many it takes to make my stomach hurt) every day for a whole week!  i'm not much at baking but i might even try my hand at a peach cobbler or, do i dare--peach pie?....


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## vitauta (Aug 14, 2011)

this has been, bar none, the best peach season i've seen in all twelve of my years living in virginia!  kicking off another week of 99c/lb. virginia grown peaches at the local grocery store! i don't ever tire of these peaches....


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## Dawgluver (Aug 14, 2011)

vitauta said:
			
		

> this has been, bar none, the best peach season i've seen in all twelve of my years living in virginia!  kicking off another week of 99c/lb. virginia grown peaches at the local grocery store! i don't ever tire of these peaches....



Sure, Vit.  Go ahead.  Rub it in.  

At least the beagle is enjoying my miserable dehydrated peaches made from miserable but pretty looking fresh peaches.


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## vitauta (Aug 14, 2011)

Dawgluver said:


> Sure, Vit.  Go ahead.  Rub it in.
> 
> At least the beagle is enjoying my miserable dehydrated peaches made from miserable but pretty looking fresh peaches.



sorry dawg, didn't know you'd find me here. at least dawg's dog is happy about the walmart peach bonanza!  after all, you DO call yourself "dawglover" don't you?


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## Dawgluver (Aug 14, 2011)

vitauta said:
			
		

> sorry dawg, didn't know you'd find me here. at least dawg's dog is happy about the walmart peach bonanza!  after all, you DO call yourself "dawglover" don't you?



That's it.  I am taking my now peach loving dog to sniff out some local trees.  Oh, wait, she does not have good taste in peaches...


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## vitauta (Aug 21, 2011)

i'm back again because my beloved virginia grown peaches are back on sale for the third week in a row!  i have been happily eating my fill of this wonderful fruit since the first week in july.  my conscience is beginning to bother me though.  a small voice in my head had begun questioning the origin of the sale supermarket peaches--as early as last week already, in fact.  the sale flyer boldly states "virginia grown peaches" are on sale for 99c lb.  when i ask the produce workers if the peaches are in fact virginia grown, i get the following responses:  "they s'posed to be", "that's what they tell me", and "it's what the boxes say".  so i buy them, and eat them, and enjoy them, but feel guilty afterwards for buying what might be "bootleg" peaches, passing by the farmers' market stands, week after week...


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## CharlieD (Aug 22, 2011)

Peaches here remind me a piece of a rubber sole rather than a fruit.


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## vitauta (Aug 22, 2011)

CharlieD said:


> Peaches here remind me a piece of a rubber sole rather than a fruit.




so sorry, charlied. i wish i could share with you our peaches and nectarines--so crazy delicious here.


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## ChefJune (Aug 22, 2011)

Peaches are also my favorite summer fruit. I only buy from one farmer at the Union Square Greenmarket. They are waay more than .99 per pound. Even the "cheap" peaches at the Greenmarket are more than that. But these peaches are organic, no pesticides (Peaches soak it all up), and gorgeously ripe and juicy. I eat as many as possible each week, and then peel and slice the rest and freeze them for cobbler and ice cream in the winter. 

Oh yes, and the peaches from this farmer each year win the Greenmarket Blind Taste Test with the shoppers and with the farmers.


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## vitauta (Aug 22, 2011)

ChefJune said:


> Peaches are also my favorite summer fruit. I only buy from one farmer at the Union Square Greenmarket. They are waay more than .99 per pound. Even the "cheap" peaches at the Greenmarket are more than that. But these peaches are organic, no pesticides (Peaches soak it all up), and gorgeously ripe and juicy. I eat as many as possible each week, and then peel and slice the rest and freeze them for cobbler and ice cream in the winter.
> 
> Oh yes, and the peaches from this farmer each year win the Greenmarket Blind Taste Test with the shoppers and with the farmers.



that's one peachy situation you have there with greenmarket, june!  btw, do you know how long before peach season is over? three, four weeks? i'm going to have some separation pangs, after this exceptionally great peach summer!


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## vitauta (Aug 22, 2011)

ChefJune said:


> Peaches are also my favorite summer fruit. I only buy from one farmer at the Union Square Greenmarket. They are waay more than .99 per pound. Even the "cheap" peaches at the Greenmarket are more than that. But these peaches are organic, no pesticides (Peaches soak it all up), and gorgeously ripe and juicy. I eat as many as possible each week, and then peel and slice the rest and freeze them for cobbler and ice cream in the winter.
> 
> Oh yes, and the peaches from this farmer each year win the Greenmarket Blind Taste Test with the shoppers and with the farmers.



that's one peachy situation you have there with greenmarket, june!  btw, do you know how long before peach season is over? three, four weeks? i'm going to have some separation pangs, i'm afraid, after this exceptionally great peach summer.


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## vitauta (Aug 27, 2011)

peaches galore!  my farmers market go-to-guy showed up a day early because of irene coming....his peaches are a velvety dark red, nearly-black in color this time.  the variety is sweet and lovely.  the nectarines are just slightly lighter crimson color and taste just like juicy honey. swear.  farmer guy gave me enough peaches and nectarines for ten dollars, to cover nearly 3/4 of my dining room table. they smell divine, especially as i walk by them.  so i walk by them quite often.  in one sitting i ate three of the fruit and almost have a stomach ache.  farmer guy says only two weeks more for the peaches, "when they go mealy, that's when i step away," he says.  meanwhile, i will make the most of what remains....


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## Fabiabi (Aug 27, 2011)

I like this Peach/nectarine thread. I know of the white flesh peaches you speak of, amazing. The best peach I've ever had was picked from a tree in Greece on my holidays. What a beauty


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## vitauta (Aug 30, 2011)

this week's peaches are rapidly disappearing from my table, where i left them to perfume the air in their vicinity. now the peaches have begun to ripen so very fast--almost, almost faster than i can eat them. two days in a row now, i've had six or more, cut up juicy fruit spilling their sweet sticky nectar into my greedy waiting mouth.  i will miss this. i miss it already.  i cut up an apple, also from my fruit guy, a golden delicious. need to start weaning myself from the peaches. nice apple, but i'm afraid the galas have effectively spoiled me for the delicious varieties for good.  red and gold. oh well, two more weeks (?) before my peach and nectarine summer comes to an end. long enough for addiction to take hold.  saturday is days away, and only one nectarine and two peaches remain....


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## CharlieD (Aug 30, 2011)

vitauta said:


> this week's peaches are rapidly disappearing from my table....


 Sounds like perfect time for peach preserve and jelly making.


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