August is National Peach Month.

 

 

Warning, I am about to confuse you with the following information about National Peach Month.

In March 1982, President Ronald Reagan pushed forward Proclamation 4947 to have July proclaimed as National Peach Month.  Congress approved, and President Reagan signed, the proclamation on June 15^th.  However, it was changed to the month of August when it was realized that is the time when the vast majority of summer peach varieties reach their highest level of sweetness, juice, and availability.

Why was this such an important issue for President Reagan?  The observance highlights the fruit's nutritional value, culinary versatility, and economic importance.

Key Peach Facts

·         The major states that produce highest yields of peaches, ranked higher to lower, are: California, South Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Colorado.

·         Main Types: Clingstone (pit sticks to flesh, good for jams) and Freestone (pit releases easily, best for fresh eating).

·         Nutrition: A medium peach has about 60 calories and provides vitamins A and C plus dietary fiber.

…and the month also has two additional important days: Eat a Peach Day on August 22nd and National Peach Pie Day on August 24th.

Our neighboring state, Colorado produces Palisade Peaches in the Grand Valley (Mesa County containing the cities of Grand Junction and Fruita, and the town of Palisade).  These peaches are the freestone variety, so the pit releases easily, and makes eating more enjoyable.  Driving through Cortez, many a parking lot has a stand featuring these peaches, and prices vary amongst the sellers.

Childhood flashback; in Brooklyn, our home was located opposite a fenced off area that led down to subway tracks.  A peach tree grew on the other side of the fence, and we got to pick peaches as soon as they ripened.  Of course they needed washing, and cutting them open was a must to make sure no parasites had made their way through.  Oh, but eating them was a treat, with the juicy sweetness flowing over my chin, onto my hands, and eventually my shirt became a napkin.  How many of you are now having your own childhood flashback when it comes to eating peaches?  Good memory, right?

Well, enough chatter, and here are two recipes to get your peaches baked.   Artisan Rustic Fruit Pie for National Peach Pie Day on the 24^th, and Peach Cake for anytime throughout the month of August.  Enjoy your peaches!

 

 

Artisan Rustic Fruit Pie

Ingredients:

1 package refrigerated pie crusts (2 in a package)

2 cans (21 oz.) fruit pie filling (in this instance, peach slices with liquid drained.  Don’t throw it away, drink it, it’s so delicious!)

2 Tbsp. butter, melted

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 425F.  Line two 9-inch round pans with parchment paper and unroll each pie crust onto center of parchment paper, carefully so as to not split the edges.

Place the peach slices in a medium bowl.  Create a unique filling with the addition of spices such as cloves, cinnamon and/or nutmeg that will kick up the flavor of the peaches.  Want a bit more color in your filling, add a handful of plump blueberries.

Onto the center of each pie crust, spoon all that lovely goodness; try to keep as much as possible piled up.

Put a little water into a small bowl, not much as you'll be using this to wet your fingertips only.  First, wet those tips, now carefully lift up the crust at the pan edges and crimp a section; the water will help keep the crimp sealed; repeat all around the filling, making sure to draw it close to the center, but not cover the filling entirely.

With a pastry brush, let me digress for a moment; you don't have to get a fancy name, expensive pastry brush.  In any hardware store, you can buy those small hair bristle brushes for about $1 - $2 each.  Yeppers, you can use them for pastry brushes; make sure to clean them in soapy hot water and dry upright before storing them away.  They last indefinitely!

Anyway, use the brush to paint the melted butter all over the exposed crust.  Afterwards, you can sprinkle cinnamon and sugar (use large or coarse grain sugar, found in the baking section) over the crust, and don't forget a little bit over the filling too.  

Bake for 30 minutes.  Remove from the oven and let them rest for 15 minutes; if there was any leakage, don’t worry, they’ll seal as the pies rest.  Each pie will look unique which gives more credence to using the terms "artisan" and "rustic".  To get the pie onto a plate, grab one end of the paper and carefully slide it out of the pan and onto the plate; cut the parchment paper as close to the pies are possible.  Serve warm as is, or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.  To store, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator; warm up a piece and don't forget the ice cream!

 

Peach Cake

Ingredients:

2 eggs. beaten

2 cups sugar (or equivalent substitute sweetener)

3 tsp. cinnamon

½ cup canola oil

4 cups peach slices

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking soda

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350F; spray two 0-inch round pans with baking spray.

In a large bowl, mix together eggs, sugar, cinnamon and oil; place in peach slices and coat with mixture.

Sift together flour and baking soda; add to large bowl and mix till dry ingredients are well absorbed. 

Divide into the two pans; bake for 55-60 minutes or until golden brown and toothpick in center comes out cleanly.

Makes 2 cakes.

Mary Cokenour

 

 

 

Chokecherrying the Berries Blue.

“White and yellow, kill a fellow.

Purple and blue, good for you.

Red… could be good, could be dead.”

Survival expert, Mykel Hawke, mnemonic for remembering which berries are safe to eat in the wild.

Now when it comes to berries in the wild, I am one to admit that I am clueless as to the species, and safety, of varieties found in Utah.  Except juniper berries which I have often seen while adventuring to explore ruin sites; and have used juniper ash when baking indigenous based recipes.

 

Here is a list of berries native to Utah:

Serviceberry (Amelanchier): Aka Saskatoon or Juneberry, these sweet, dark blue berries are common in high mountain valleys and ripen in mid-summer.

Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana): Aka Bitter Cherry is very popular for preserves and jellies

Elderberry (Sambucus cerulea): Large shrubs producing clusters of blue berries, often used for jams.

Golden Currant (Ribes aureum): A very hardy native bush that produces yellow-to-black berries.

Oregon Grape (Mahonia repens): A low-growing, groundcover shrub with tart blue berries, often found in mountain areas.

Thimbleberry (Rubus parviflorus): Similar to a raspberry, but flatter and softer.

Buffaloberry (Shepherdia argentea): Often found along rivers, producing bright red or yellow berries.

Bearberry/Kinnikinnick (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi): A trailing, low-growing woody plant with red berries.

Truth be told, the only berries I have seen, for sale, were chokecherry in a jam form, and elderberry, in capsule or gummy form.  If there is a place, within San Juan County, where the berries can be purchased, in whole form, or any other way, I’d really love to know.  In local markets, the typical berries, known to the majority of Americans, are: strawberry, raspberry, blackberry and blueberry.  Oh, I just heard someone ask, “What about cherries, since chokecherry is listed as a berry?”

Cherries have pits in the middle that cannot be eaten, so classified as stone fruits. Berries have seeds in the middle, or coating the outside, and the whole fruit can be eaten, seeds and all.  Chokecherries grow on a shrub, and indigenous peoples used the dried berries in pemmican; a mixture of dried meat, fruit, and fat. The berries were also cooked to create juice and pastes, which were used to help with respiratory and digestive issues.

All the berries we find in stores must be grown, and shipped into, Utah from other states as they are not drought resistant.  So, fresh or frozen, we make due with what we can purchase.

However, and I mentioned this in my mushroom article from November 8, 2023, it would be wonderful if there were classes, and actual outings into our wonderous outdoors, on foraging wild edibles.  I am not the only person saying we need more outdoor activities besides hiking, camping, ATVing, etc., so outdoor experts, what say you about starting food foraging classes?

Ah, so the recipe I will be sharing will contain a very popular berry indeed, the blueberry. They are little bombs loaded with antioxidants that explode within the body to help reduce the risk of: cancer, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.  They have an anti-inflammatory property to reduce joint pain, act as prebiotics to reduce gastrointestinal issues, and strengthen blood vessels in the back of the eyes that helps to improve vision.  These little blue-purplish beauties pack one heck of a healthful punch.  By the way, out in the wild, the berry most similar to blueberries is the serviceberry.  Growing on native shrubs, they are sweet, purple-black, round berries that taste like a mix of blueberry and apple, with a hint of almond. They are drought-tolerant, common in canyons, and make excellent jams, jellies, and pies.

 

With extra blueberries, made two rustic pies of apples and blueberries.

The recipe for Lemon Blueberry Loaf is simple, can be made into muffins as well, and delicious with or without the glaze.  The sweetness of the berries and the tartness of the lemons balance out to give the taste buds a zesty treat.

 

Lemon Blueberry Loaf

Ingredients:

2/3 cup (12 Tbsp.) melted butter

2 cups sugar (or equal non-calorie sweetener; I use Splenda baking blend)

6 Tbsp. lemon juice

4 large eggs

3 cups all-purpose flour (+1/4 cup for high altitude)

2 tsp. baking powder

2 tsp. salt

1 cup milk (I use 2%)

4 Tbsp. of grated lemon peel (fresh, or reconstituted dry)

2 cups of fresh or frozen blueberries

Glaze

3 Tbsp. lemon juice

2 Tbsp. melted butter

2 cups confectioners’ sugar

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350F; spray, with baking spray, three 8-inch loaf pans, or line muffin tins with paper liners (16-18 standard size, 12 large size).

 

 

 

 

In a medium bowl, blend the butter with the sugar, lemon juice and eggs until smooth. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Add egg mixture and milk to dry ingredients; stir until well combined.

Fold in lemon peel and blueberries. 

 

 

 

 

Spoon mixture into loaf pans, 3/4s full; or same for muffin liners.  

Bake 55-60 minutes for loaves, 15 to 18 minutes for muffins; or until golden brown and toothpick in center comes out clean.

 

Move loaves and/or muffins to baking rack to fully cool before spooning glaze over tops.

Makes 3 loaves, or 12 or 16-18 muffins, depending on muffin tin size.

So folks, remember to chew your berries well, as you don’t want to be choking on them.

Mary Cokenour 

 

 

 

Fruit Pie Without the Pie Pan.

Recently there was a bake sale at the Monticello Welcome Center; all funds raised were being donated to the upkeep of the Big 4 Tractor.  The Big 4 is the only one left in the United States that is still running.  It appears in the Pioneer Day Parade every year, and goes to other events.  This tractor is rare and priceless, so efforts are being made to have it declared a National Monument.

Since I had already planned on making a birthday surprise for Dave, the retired manager of (who still volunteers at) the Welcome Center; why not make extra for the bake sale.   While flipping through cooking magazines, I came upon the photo and recipe for "Rustic Fruit Pie".  Now I've said it before, and I'll say it again, baking is not one of my favorite culinary activities, but I do try from time to time.  However, I was able to figure out how to cheat on the recipe, make it simple for myself, and even make extra for the bake sale.  I call mine "Artisan Rustic Fruit Pie"; artisan for handcrafted, rustic for country style; hence the use of both descriptive words.  By the way, you might see such names as tart or galette used to describe them; whatever works for the baker, I say.

Artisan Rustic Fruit Pie

 

 

Ingredients:

 

1 package refrigerated pie crusts (2 in a package)

2 cans (21 oz.) fruit pie filling

2 Tbsp. butter, melted

 

Preparation:

 

Preheat oven to 425F; line baking sheets with parchment paper.

 

Unroll each pie crust onto center of parchment paper. 

 

 

Apple Filling, Raisins, Nutmeg

In a medium bowl, use a fork to take all the fruit out of the can; all the liquid is unnecessary, so don't worry over leaving it.  It might come in handy later on to serve over ice cream.

 

Now comes the truly fun part, creating a unique filling.  While the pie filling itself might just be enough; the addition of spices such as cloves, cinnamon or nutmeg will kick up the flavor of apple or peach.  For cherry or blueberry, I usually have bags of frozen stored in the freezer, so add a nice handful to the canned fruit.  Slivered almonds can be added to the fruit, or used on the crust; raisins go great with the apple.









Onto the center of the pie crust, spoon all that lovely goodness; try to keep as much as possible piled up.














Put a little water into a small bowl, not much as you'll be using this to wet your fingertips only.  First, wet those tips, now carefully lift up the crust and crimp a section; the water will help keep the crimp sealed; repeat all around the filling, making sure to draw it close to the center, but not cover it entirely.

Almost done all around.



Done!

 

 

 

 



 



With a pastry brush, let me digress for a moment; you don't have to get a fancy name, expensive pastry brush.  In any hardware store, you can buy those small hair bristle brushes for about $1 each.  Yeppers, you can use them for pastry brushes; make sure to clean them in soapy hot water and dry upright before storing them away.  They last indefinitely!

So, use the brush to paint the melted butter all over the exposed crust.  Afterwards, you can sprinkle cinnamon and sugar (use large or coarse grain sugar, found in the baking section) over the crust, and don't forget a little bit over the filling too.  For the cherry and blueberry, I used brown sugar; and this is where you can add those slivered almonds too.

Large Grain Sugar

Cinnamon and Sugar over Crust and Filling

Ready to Bake Apple (on left), Peach (right)

Bake for 30 minutes.  Now it's going to be a given that they might leak as there is no pan keeping them from expanding; after the 30 minutes, remove from the oven and let them rest for 15 minutes; the leaks will seal themselves.  Each pie will look unique which gives more credence to using the terms "artisan" and "rustic".  To get the pie onto a plate, cut the parchment paper around the pie, grab one end of the paper and simply slide it off the baking sheet and onto the plate.  Serve warm from the oven alone, or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.  To store, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator; warm up a piece and don't forget the ice cream!

Apple Raisin

Blueberry

Cherry

Peach

..and there you have them, rustic fruit pies using store bought items.  It might be cheating, but it's still homemade, and delicious!!!

Mary Cokenour