Adventures in Peaches: Pt. 2

The kitchen has been a simmer the past few days, as mom and I tackled a fridge full of thawing peaches, of which at times, would spontaneously spill out, creating pools of peach juice on the floor. 

Pies were the first to happen. I ended up making two, which though the filling turned out exactly as I had hoped, the crust did not hold up its end. It did not fully cook, except for the top edges which makes me think that perhaps I should try pre-cooking it on low for a bitt before adding the filling. Will this unlock the key to the under-cooked pie crust mystery? Upon further research into the freezer, there still remains one container of cut frozen peaches, and I shall put them to good use on another pie and give the crust recipe one final chance.

Making the jam was actually my favourite part, so much learning from just one little endeavor. I ended up making three batches, and felt right at home stirring away, while peach-delights came wafting up out of the pot.  I felt completely at ease, and could certainly be happy to spend some of my more quiet days humming about the kitchen, preparing food to store for the winter, or give away to friends and family as gifts, harvested fresh from the garden or found at the local farmers market. 


For the first, I used the traditional grocery store pectin, and reading the box, out of curiosity, their recipe for one batch of jam called for 7 cups of sugar. Yikes! But understandably, that kind of pectin is dependent upon sugar in order for it to bind. What did they use in early jam making I wonder, before store bought packages of pectin came around? Time to nerd out and do some research!  I decided to ignore the pectin's need for loads of sugar, and followed the recipe out of "stocking up".  The final results for the first batch was decent. The flavour errs more on the honey side but otherwise emphasized the peaches. The only downside was that it turned into a peachy sauce as opposed to jam, due to my decision to forego the hoards of honey. Now it is more versatile...and can be added to pancakes and ice cream. That's what I had planned of the first batch anyway...



  For the next two batches, mom located a different brand of pectin while exploring a food co-op. The brand is called "Pomona's Universal Pectin" and though I think more costly than your typical pectin, this one jells even without using loads of sweetener.  The pectin has been extracted by citrus peel, and is activated by calcium rather than sugar. Upon use, I am impressed. The two batches turned out much better, and have jelled together, into  a peachy dream of goodness.

Canning, as it turns out, is not such a terrifying process afterall. Working with glass felt like a rather daunting task, however, I was surprised to learn that the mason jars can withstand a fair amount of heat.  Using a large stock pot, fill with water, and add the jars in and let them come up to a boil.  In a smaller pot, though one could also just use the same pot as the jars, heat all the lids. There is a special jar funnel, to help keep the seals on the jars clean, it has a wider mouth than traditional funnels. Using thongs, remove a jar from the water bath, pouring out all the water, put funnel into place, and using a ladle, pour in the jam, until about 1/4" from the top. Once the jam has been poured into the jars, take a clean cloth and wipe the rim, to make sure there is no residue left. Again, using the thongs, remove one of the lids, sealing just to close, but do not tighten. Once all the jars have been filled, place them back into the hot water bath, making sure to cover the tops of the jars fully with water. They will then need to stay in the heated water for 10 minutes which will ensure that the lids have fully sealed. Et Voila! Fresh peach jam to stock the cupboards with for the rest of the winter!

Now, it is time to make some toast and enjoy!