Every summer we make a trip to Fredericksburg, the peach capitol of Texas. I have so many great memories of going on peach picking trips with my mother-in-law, who introduced me to Fredericksburg orchards, and husband and later with my mom, grandmother and my kids. I have a special memory of taking my kids peach picking with my mom and my grandmother. Four generations enjoying the summer sweetness of the Texas Hill Country. I have pictures of that day somewhere. 😏
We usually try to go later in the summer when the freestone varieties are ready to pick. Here’s a little peach lesson for those that don’t know. Peach varieties fall into two categories, clingstone or freestone. This relates to the pit or seed of the peach. The pit in clingstone varieties, as the name implies, clings to the peach flesh and needs to be cut out. In freestone varieties, the pit does not cling but is “free” from the flesh. Since I mostly preserve our peaches, the freestone varieties are much easier. Slice the peach in half and the pit pops right out!
There you go, your peach lesson for the day! 🍑
We visited Fredericksburg in late June (maybe to see a wedding venue😉) and came home with a half bushel of Harvest variety of freestone peaches from our favorite orchard, Jenschke Orchards.
We eat a few peaches fresh and the rest are turned in to peach preserves to share with friends and family. I use an easy recipe with nothing but peaches and sugar. I love preserves because I can control the amount of sugar and the size of the fruit chunks. I like my preserves with chunks of fruit, not completely smooth.
In case you missed it, I have a reel on Instagram about how I blanch my peaches to peel them. The easiest method!!
We don’t keep ice cream in the house, but every time I start canning peaches my husband runs out for a pint of Bluebell Vanilla ice cream and I keep a small container of warm preserves aside for his dessert!
If you haven’t tried canning peaches I highly recommend it! Pinterest has a ton of recipes. Comment below if you’d like my recipe and I’m happy to send it along!
Happy summer!!
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