Let's start this blog off right, shall we? Late July in St. Louis marks the beginning of peach season! And there's only one place to go in the St. Louis area to get the best peaches...Eckert's! My husband and I visited the Belleville location this past weekend along with his parents. It was a beautiful day and the peaches were ripe for picking! (and only $1.59/lb. when picking your own or $1.49/lb. in their market) Side note: Eckert's peaches at Schnucks are on sale this week for $1.48/lb. so if you can't make it to the orchard you can still get local farm fresh peaches for a great price at the local supermarket! Dierberg's also has peaches advertised for $1.48/lb. from orchards in Campbell, MO. If you can make it to the orchards, though, I highly recommend the experience!
Anyway, Jim Dandee peaches happen to be what's ripe right now (Loring and Crest Haven peaches will be ready for picking in the next week or two) and let me tell you, they are the juciest, freshest peaches you will ever have. All I can say is wow. Straight off the tree they weren't quite perfectly ripe, but still had an incredible flavor...two days later we had peach juice running down our chins. Notice above how many peaches we picked....so what did we do with all those Dandees? We made a peach pie, of course! This is not your typical baked peach pie. In fact, the only baking done is 10-12 minutes for the crust. You can whip up the filling while the crust bakes and have a delicious, chilled peach pie to impress your family and friends with this weekend! Thanks to my sister for sharing the recipe which comes from a family friend!
Fresh Peach Pie
Crust:
1 1/2 c. flour
2 Tbls. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. oil
2 Tbls. milk
Mix and press into pie plate. Prick crust and bake at 400 degrees 10-12 mintues until light golden brown.
Filling:
1 c. sugar
3 1/2 Tbls. corn starch
pinch of salt
2 Tbls. corn syrup
1 c. water
3 Tbls. peach jello (powdered)
6 peaches, peeled and sliced
1 tsp. almond extract
Mix sugar, corn starch, salt, corn syrup, and water in a large pot. Bring to boiling and stir until thick and translucent. Remove from heat and stir in jello. Allow to cool. Add almond extract (be careful not to overdo the almond extract!!) Cool thoroughly and add peaches. Pour peaches and filling into pie crust and refrigerate. Top with cool whip, if desired.
This is it! Enjoy this delicious creation and please leave feedback or comments if you would like!Looking for other tasty ideas for your fresh picked peaches? Check out the Eckert's website www.eckerts.com for more peachy recipes or try a Homemade Gourmet Texas Cobbler Mix with your juicy picks!
