Peaches! Peaches! Peaches!

peach butter, peach syrup, n a peach cocktail

My favorite part of summer is when the stone fruit starts to come around. Besides a perfect watermelon on a hot summer day, nothing feels more summery to me than standing over your sink while eating a perfectly ripe and juicy peach or nectarine. Leaving you feeling sticky and messy and full of nostalgia like you’re again kid carefree during summer break.

I can never control myself when it comes to stone fruit season, I go to the store, weekly, often more, I need more peaches. I go to the farmers market and see them glowing and perfectly piled in a box, and yet again, I need them. I need more. But… If you know you me or my husband, it’s possible you know that Z doesn’t eat fruit.. that’s a different story… so me + my lack of control with stone fruit + my for life housemate who doesn’t eat fruit = waaay to many fruit for one person. However, over the 7 years we’ve been together, I have found ways to get both get my peach fix and what to do when I accidentally have more than I can consume on my own.

One of those is peach butter. It has now become a tradition, just with myself, that every August-September, I make a big batch of peach butter. Because as much as I love summer and have been hyping summer produce on this newsletter, I am yet another female that is obsessed with autumn. The mornings here in Seattle are getting a little cooler and crisp, and some days you can now get away with a light pullover. Peach butter marks this transition of summer to autumn for me. The cool breeze and a slow, simmering pot of peaches perfuming the house with summers sweet fruit and warming spices, like cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, I know it’s soon time to welcome the transition to fall, and say goodbye to summer.

I know, I know, I can hear both now— the fall girlies who have been ready for Halloween, Pumpkin spice, candles, and sweaters since August saying bring it!! and the summer girlies who are shouting to keep fall away because it’s still tomato girl summer! These recipes are for both of you. A lil something to feel the flavors of autumn and a lil something to enjoy sitting on your porch/deck/next picnic in these, still, warm summer days.

Now to the recipes!

First a note— feel free to adjust these recipes to however many peaches you find yourself having. If you only have a little bit, lessen the amounts of the rest of the recipe. If you have loads, double or triple the recipe! If you like your syrup sweet, add more sugar, if you don’t do less. If you want your syrup supppper rich of peach add more than I did. If you want your peach butter sweet add more, or add less if you don’t. Think you see what I mean here? These are so unfussy and easily adaptable to more or less of something. Just keep tasting along the way till it feels perfectly right to you!

Peach Syrup

Whatcha Need!

Tools:

• Cutting Board

• Knife

• Pot

• Stirring spoon

• Medium bowl

• Bottle or jar to store syrup in

• Fine mesh strainer

Pantry and Fridge:

• 2-3 large peaches

• 1/2 to 1 cup granulated sugar *at this point in the season, peaches should be suuper sweet. But try yours, and if they aren’t, go the full 1-to-1 simple syrup method and do a cup of sugar.

• 1 cup water

Substitutions:

• Sugars → maple syrup, honey, coconut sugar, or any other sweetener you prefer

Let’s Prep!

• Wash and pit the peaches, and then roughly chop.

Let’s get cookin’!

• In a pot large enough to fit your peaches, place all ingredients into pot and stir to combine. Heat the mixture over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring often until the sugar dissolves.

• Simmer the peaches for between 10-15 minutes, only gently stirring occasionally, until they begin to break down, and the mixture has reduced and thickened.

• Pour the syrup mixture through a fine mesh strainer set over a bowl to remove the solids. Press down the peach pieces to extract as much syrup as possible. *Keep the strained solids for peach butter below!!* Let cool, then pour syrup into a sterilized bottle or jar. Store in the refrigerator for 2 weeks, and give a shake before use.

Peach Butter

Whatcha Need!

Tools:

• Cutting Board

• Knife

• Pot

• Stirring spoon

• Jars or containers to store peach butter in

• Immersion blender/food processor/blender/or potato masher.

Pantry and Fridge:

• 1 lb peaches

• 1/4 cup granulated sugar

• 1/4 light brown sugar

• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

• 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg, or ground

• 1/8 tsp ground cloves

• 1 lemon

• Pinch of salt, Kosher

Substitutions:

• Sugars → maple syrup, honey, coconut sugar, or any other sweetener you prefer

• Spices → feel free to play around with your favorite warm spices. cardamom, allspice, ginger, star anise, etc. would all be yum!

Let’s Prep!

• Wash and pit the peaches, and then roughly chop.

• Half the lemon, then juice one half, and save the other half for another use.

Let’s get cookin’!

• In a pot large enough to fit your peaches, place all ingredients into pot and stir to combine. *If you made peach syrup before this, add the strained peaches into the pot at this step* Heat the mixture over medium-low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure the mixture doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.

• Using an immersion blender, puree the peach mixture until desired consistency. I like to leave a few small chunks in mine. If you don't have an immersion blender, you can use a blender or food processor. Let the peach butter cool to room temperature before transfering the peach butter to a blender or food processor to puree.

• Let the peach butter cool completely, then pour into jars or desired container. If stored in the refrigerator, it will keep for about two weeks. If stored in the freezer it will keep for about 3 months. Though… I’ve definitely found peach butter a year later and was still great.

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Let’s drink!

Fenwyck's Farfel

named after the Vince Guaraldi Trio Album, Track 2, my favorite transitioning to fall album.

• 1.5 oz bourbon, I love Basil Hayden

• 3/4 oz peach butter

• 3/4 oz lemon juice

• 1/2 oz Cynar amaro

• 1/4 oz allspice dram

• 1/4 oz peach syrup (can do more if you want it sweet, or go without if allspice dram is sweet enough for your palette)

• Club soda

• Garnish: dried peach, or lemon peel

Place all ingredients into a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake until chilled and strain into a chilled double old-fashioned glass. Top with club soda and garnish.

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Hope to see some of you at the (sold out) Vashon dinner this Labor Day weekend! Speaking of peaches, I’m in the midst of making a ginger peach shrub for said dinner, and a stone fruit galette will certainly be making an appearance. Please send me all the photos of you and your peaches you gather this summer, and of course if you make any of these recipes on IG! But most important Q— are you the summer girly or autumn girly?