This summer is SO hot my fruit is ripening quicker than usual. Seriously, bananas no longer last a week, even indoors! So, it’s not that big of a surprise that my 25-pound box of peaches turned up all ripening at the same time AND about 2 or 3 days earlier than I expected. I’m glad I knew what to do when peaches “turn” too quickly!
I wasn’t prepared for this mass ripening…but I had to get prepared and fast! I love peaches and planned to eat some just fresh for meals. So, I put a dozen in the fridge to keep a few days longer. (You could also make some smoothies and overnight oats!) The rest I had to freeze right away. But they were a little too soft to simply cut and freeze in quarters like I would normally (see that method here). Dessert fillings were the answer.
Blanching makes removing skin easy!
When I freeze peaches in quarters, I leave the skin on…it just comes off so easily as they defrost, it’s a no-brainer to save the time it takes to remove that skin before freezing. But if you’re putting up fillings to be used in pies or cobblers, you want that skin off now. Blanching gets this done QUICK!
Fill a large pot with water (deep enough it would cover a peach) and bring it to a boil. Meanwhile, prepare an ice bath in a large bowl. Wash your peaches, then cut a small X on the blossom end (check out peach anatomy here) of each and drop ‘em in the boiling water (I did four at a time so I could handle this as it moves pretty fast). Let ‘em boil for about 30 seconds (you don’t want to cook ’em), then scoop ‘em out and immediately drop ‘em in the ice bath until they cool.
Once cooled, take one out, grab one of the points of skin at the x and gently pull the skin away from the flesh. Repeat until completely skinned. Insert edge of a sharp knife in the X on the bottom and cut all the way around the pit. Remove pit and slice peaches to the thickness you want.
Preparing freezer packs
If you have a favorite cobbler or pie recipe, how much fruit does it call for? Could you pack it with the sugar required as a time-saver for later? My favorite cobbler calls for 2 cups of fruit (in the case of peaches, sliced) and 1 cup of sugar.
So, I sliced 2 cups of peaches into a big measuring cup, covered ‘em with the sugar, and then dumped everything into a quart freezer bag and marked it “peaches with sugar for cobbler.” Then I laid ‘em flat in the freezer to harden.
The peach/blueberry pie I love calls for 2 cups of sliced peaches AND 1 cup of blueberries. But I had run out of sugar. No worries – I just marked the bag “peaches and blueberries for pie – no sugar.” Now when I grab a pack from the freezer to make the pie, I know exactly what’s in there and what’s left to be added before baking.
OH NO – my peach turned to mush!
There are freestone peaches (whose flesh pulls away from the pit or stone easily) and clingstone peaches (this flesh doesn’t want to let go of the pit – it “clings”). Since you can’t tell which is which from the outside, you may occasionally get one that just won’t come off the pit, even when it’s ripe. And you might mush it a little trying to get it off.
My suggestion for those is to take a break and enjoy a little peach snack! Or peel and cut as much as possible off the pit. (I prefer the snacking option!)
Pre-packed peaches make quick desserts later
Now, whether it’s peach season or not, I have fillings for my favorite cobbler and pie ready to go. I’ll simply move a pack to the fridge overnight, and I’m ready to bake!
Don’t have a cobbler recipe or want the pie recipe I mentioned? Let me know in the comments below…could be a future post!
Want other tips on saving money by freezing? Try these!
Even I learned some new stuff!! Peaches are almost in Charlotte and I will buy mine at Farmer’s Market soon and proceed to freeze per your instructions.
Love that I could help! ; )