Tag Archives: peaches

recipe: peaches and cream ice cream!

recipe: peaches and cream ice cream! I.

we ended up getting hundreds of peaches off the tree this years, so i figured after the success with purple moon ice cream i’d try my luck with a peaches and cream recipe! it’s basically my regular vanilla recipe ( which somehow i’ve posted?! ) with this peach processing methodology.

ingredients
1 1/2 to 2 pounds fresh peaches, peeled, pitted and chopped into pieces
4 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 1/2 cups organic valley half-and-half
8 organic valley egg yolks
1 3/4 cup sugar
2 1/2 cups organic valley heavy whipping cream
4 tsp. vanilla extract
1/8th teaspoon salt

optional maple syrup for topping

directions

combine the peaches, 1/2 cup of the sugar and the lemon juice in a medium bowl. stir, cover and refrigerate overnight.

in a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat half-and-half until very hot, but not boiling, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and set aside.

in a mixing bowl, whisk together egg yolks and sugar until well blended and slightly thickened.

very gradually add half-and-half to egg yolks and sugar and mix until blended.

return half-and-half mixture to saucepan and cook over medium heat until small bubbles form around edge and mixture is steamy, stirring constantly. do not boil.

transfer half-and-half mixture into large bowl. stir in whipping cream, vanilla and salt.

cover and chill thoroughly, at least 8 hours.

assemble ice cream maker according to directions.

place a fine-mesh sieve over the bowl and pour the peaches into the sieve, straining the juice into the custard mixture.

start up ice cream maker and add mixture slowly.

churn for about 20 minutes until thick, soft-serve consistency is reached. add the peaches after about 15 minutes of churning.

put in a freezer safe container and store in the freezer.

recipe: peaches and cream ice cream! II.

in a fit of inspiration, odin and i decided to drizzle a bit of maple syrup on top of the ice cream and it is almost impossible to describe how outrageously good the result turned out. i mean, with 8 egg yolks and heavy whipping cream, the vanilla recipe is already a nearly over-the-top rich and creamy custard and when you add in the peach juice and peaches and maple syrup, well, it’s eyes-rolling-in-the-back-of-your-head good.

peachy! peachy! peachy!

peachy! peachy! peachy!

it’s time once again to harvest the peaches and enjoy The Transformative Power of A Real Peach ( and a little heavy whipping cream ). if you’re able to get the chance you should experience a peach fresh off a tree. amazing.

we’ve pulled maybe 4 dozen peaches off the tree in the past week and there’s at least as many yet to be picked and that’s with plenty of evidence laying around that the squirrels are taking quite a few. there’s such a bounty that we don’t even have to resort to balloon peach decoys!

i see some grilled peaches with balsamic vinegar and caramelized brown sugar in my future.

The Transformative Power of A Real Peach ( and a little heavy whipping cream ).

The Transformative Power of A Real Peach  ( and a little heavy whipping cream ).

after years of avoiding them altogether thanks to being ruined in my early years by their canned commercial cousins, i am thoroughly enjoying my Rediscovery of The Peach. in a way it’s funny because, of course, we’re all about fresh, local and organic. i mean, we have back yard chickens for pete’s sake. we’re part of a csa, have several gardens and i’m the milk and cream product manager for organic valley. we’re sitting right at the “grow yer own peak” of the evolving organic lifestyle.

and yet, until very recently i still thought a store peach was A Peach. i am here to testify to you that unless you are very lucky, it is Not A Peach. not at all. not even close. it’s a tasteless, mealy peach imposter.

A Real Peach is transformative. no, really, this is not hyperbole. i finally, really understand why alice waters imagined The Peach would change lives:

“It started with a peach. Not just any peach but a Frog Hollow Farm peach, coaxed into its fullness by the rich loam of the Sacramento River Delta. A golden peach suffused with a lover’s blush, a hint of erotic give at the cleft, its juice sliding down the chin at the gentlest pressure — it was a peach that tastes the way peaches once did, the way they should. It was the peach with which Alice Waters, the founder of Chez Panisse in Berkeley, the chef who revolutionized American fine dining, imagined she would transform children’s lives.”

“It was Frog Hollow peaches, which can sell for about $5 a pound, that Waters took seven years ago to the first day of summer session at Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School in Berkeley. She was carving an organic garden out of a parking lot next to the playground, planting the seeds for a schoolwide program to promote ecological and gastronomic literacy. One bite of these peaches, she thought, and the scales placed on students’ eyes by the false prophets of the junk-food industry would fall away.”

transformative indeed. and if you add a bit of heavy whipping cream and just the slightest sprinkle of sugar the A Real Peach you’ll have The Worlds Best Peaches and Cream. i wish i had recorded our collective reactions to tasting it for the first time and caught the pause and eye-widening and mouth-filled “oooooooooh, this is good!” exclamations.

i know we’ll be patiently waiting every year for these Wonders of Nature to arrive.

day 2608: The Great Peach Harvest.

day 2608: The Great Peach Harvest. I.

i think it’s safe to call kris and odin’s crazy balloon peach decoy idea an unqualified success. last year i got to enjoy one peach and this year we have lots and lots of not decoy peaches!

as best as i can tell, the only difference is the balloons. seriously considering some small design changes for next near to make them a little more peach-like – smaller and peachier and a little firmer of a balloon so you can increase the air pressure so they really POP!

day 2608: The Great Peach Harvest. II.

we’ve pulled about 70 or 80 peaches off the tree which is really incredible considering the fact that we pruned the tree so far back in the spring that i thought we wouldn’t get any fruit at all this year ( the typical recommendation is to not prune more than 30% of the tree and after not pruning for a few years we decided to take off more than 60% ).

i’ve had some people ask what type of peach tree we planted. looking back, i see it was a reliance peach tree, which is supposedly the most cold hardy peach available and definitely suitable for wisconsin and minnesota. it’s primarily considered a “canning” peach but i think it tastes Just Grand right off the tree. red havens are also cold hardy and i hear some folks claim they are better tasting off the tree ( hard to imagine how that is possible ).

day 2608: The Great Peach Harvest. III.

to get the best of both worlds, i think we might try grafting a red haven on to our tree, although it looks like it might take some skill to get it to take.

any and all grafting advice would be mightily appreciated.

day 2608: The Great Peach Harvest. outtake.

you see that smile? that’s odin’s “okay, really, poppi knock off taking pictures and lend a hand” smile 🙂

recipe: grilled peaches with balsamic vinegar and caramelized brown sugar.

recipe: grilled peaches with balsamic vinegar and caramelized brown sugar. I.

now that we have lots of not decoy peaches we, of course, have to find new enjoy the peachy goodness. this is a new problem for me since i’ve always avoided peaches before discovering the wonders of a perfectly ripened peach fresh off the tree.

my sister recommened grilled peaches and after seeing this simple but tasty sounding recipe, i had to give it a try:

“the sugar-plus-heat combination makes for a seductive caramelizing effect, balsamic vinegar cuts through the sweetness; factor in a touch of smoke flavor from the coals and you essentially have s’mores for grown-ups, with a texture almost exactly like peach pie filling. Best of all, you can cook them without having to leave the backyard for more than two minutes.”

first, preheat the grill to 500°F, or whatever. Peach Searing Hot is what we’re looking for.

get some peaches, not too soft, and halve and pit them.

recipe: grilled peaches with balsamic vinegar and caramelized brown sugar. II.

“marinate” the peaches in balsamic vinegar and a bit of brown sugar for around an hour. i’m guessing you could get away with not marinating if you’re pressed for time.

recipe: grilled peaches with balsamic vinegar and caramelized brown sugar. III.

brush on a little bit of oil onto the grill and place the peaches face-down for 3 or 5 minutes.

turn them over, sprinkle a generous amount of brown sugar on top and keep on the grill until they are soft through and through.

they do not disappoint! my first reponse?

“oh. mah. gawd. grilled peaches with balsamic vinegar and caramelized brown sugar, where have you been all my life?”

as an added bonus, it’s gluten free which always makes me happy!

i’m going to have to make a batch of homemade vanilla ice cream to make a great thing even better.