Day 1: Basil Peach Preserves

The 31-day Fall Challenge is here!

Let's get started, with preserves. The humble, delicious idea of preserving your fruit is one my grandmother and her sisters used to do regularly. The fruits usually came from their gardens or a nearby farmer friend. My grandmother was one of the few (out of 8) that lived in a city, and farmers' markets weren't as popular back in the day; so she bought her fruit at the grocery store. Since I don't have a garden (yet), I'm in a similar boat. But, even if you aren't Farmer Joe or Jane, you can still make delicious preserves! I just discovered white peaches (I know, I know), so I used a bundle of these to make it happen (& they were on sale, bonus). White peaches are pretty sweet, so that allowed me to cut back on sugar.

Basil Peach Preserves
This recipe is the simplest I could find to make preserves, with a couple of my own changes. Preserves are incredibly versatile, not just for toast! Top it on pancakes or in crepes, mixed in oatmeal or yogurt, or use as a sauce for pork, shrimp, chicken or turkey. This can also be the base for a spicy jam that you top on cream cheese for an awesome holiday dip. The basil is present, but not overpowering.
Makes 3 cups of preserves

8-10 medium peaches  (about 3 1/2 pounds)
Pinch of kosher salt
Dash of cinnamon
1 1/2 cups sugar
Juice of 1 lemon
10 fresh basil leaves
 

Step One: Peel, pit and slice peaches into chunks. (If you want smaller pieces, pulse in a food processor until chunky.) I personally like chunky preserves for versatility, but it's your call.



 Step Two: Move the peaches to a large saucepan, adding salt, cinnamon, sugar and lemon juice. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Keep boiling and stirring until the bubbles slow down, the foam subsides, the fruit rises to the top and the jam sticks to a spoon when lifted (15 minutes total). Add in the whole basil leaves and stir. Let cool for an hour, and then transfer to the fridge until completely cooled.


 
Step Three: Transfer cold preserves to sanitized jars. The preserves can stay in the fridge for up to 2 months. Enjoy!

Adapted from:
Williams-Sonoma
Martha Stewart
Georgia Peach Council 



Happy eating!
Laurel

Surprise dinner and Caramelized peaches

Happy Sunday!

This weekend has been full of work and papers and a (little) bit of baking.

Matt surprised me with a deliciously tasty shrimp pasta. Mmm.

 And, to thank him, I made dessert...for myself. Oops. Easiest dessert ever.

 1 very ripe peach, sliced
1 1/2 TB margarine/butter
1 1/2 TB brown sugar
Dash of cinnamon

In a saute pan, add margarine, cinnamon and brown sugar. Stir until melted. Add in peaches and cook on a lower heat for 3 minutes. Cover (with lid propped open slightly) and let simmer for 8 minutes or so. Eat!

Serve by themselves or over yogurt or vanilla ice cream. Enjoy.

 On a random note, after 24 years, I have stopped biting my nails. I just had to document it! Okay, enough of that. Go eat the peaches.


Happy eating! Laurel

Nutty Ginger Peach Oatmeal

This is tasty. The inspiration is from Americanized Indian foods that combine the ginger-peach flavors--chicken dishes, hot teas, desserts. Why not roll it into breakfast?

Nutty Ginger Peach Oatmeal
serves 1 but easily double, tripled
1/2 cup oats
1 cup water or unsweetened vanilla soy milk
1 TB ground flaxseed
1/2 peach, bite-size pieces
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 to 1/2 teaspoon candied ginger, sliced into tiny bits
1 t. brown sugar


Pour each ingredient, in order, into a ceramic bowl.


Microwave for 3 minutes (or on the stove for 5 minutes, covered). 

Once cooked, stir gently. Serve piping hot.
The flaxseed gives the oats a nuttiness, the peaches bring comfort and sweet tang, and the candied ginger adds zest and a spice out of this world. I like my oatmeal a bit sweet so the brown sugar balances everything. Yummm. This should fill you up for 3-5 hours.

Quickest smoothie ever

Ever need a quick breakfast, but a granola bar isn't enough? Grab this.

Quickest Smoothie Ever
Serves one in a hurry
1/2 cup orange juice
1 frozen banana
1/2 frozen peach
3 frozen strawberries
1 TB ground flax

Blend all together. Gulp down immediately while running out the door.

Have we talked about flax seed yet?
I suppose it's time.

FLAX SEED is a superfood. This WebMD article summarizes a lot of it.

FACTS:

• Can be traced back to Babylon as early as 3000 BC, and King Charlemagne thought so highly of the food that he passed laws to command his people to eat it.
• Omega-3 essential fatty acids, "good" fats that have been shown to have heart-healthy effects. Each tablespoon of ground flaxseed contains about 1.8 grams of plant omega-3s.
• Lignans, which have both plant estrogen and antioxidant qualities. Flaxseed contains 75-800 times more lignans than other plant foods.
• Fiber. Flaxseed contains both the soluble and insoluble types.
• It is linked to preventing cardiovascular and lung diseases, as well as preventing certain types of cancers (lung, breast, colon).
• The omega-3s in flax seed can reduce atherosclerotic plaque buildup (in the arteries) by up to 75%.
• Daily intake of flax seed can regulate your cholesterol levels and even your blood sugar, for current and potential diabetics. (This is so huge.)
• And, for middle aged ladies, 2 TB of ground flax seed in your yogurt or on fruit twice a day is believed to reduce hot flashes by 50%.
  

  

  Golden and dark flax seed are equal in nutritional value

Okay, if that hasn't convinced you, just try it. Flax seed in inexpensive (bought in the bulk bins at the grocery store or in bags in the healthy living/vitamin departments at the stores). It's cheaper to buy whole flax seeds and then go home and ground them in your coffee grinder or food processor. I keep a little jar of them on the kitchen counter, right next to the sea salt. It's easy to sprinkle on yogurt, fruit, in smoothies, oatmeal, in baking breads and cakes, in pasta, soups, taco meat, anything really! Doctors recommend 1-2 tablespoons a day, and consuming ground flax seed is absorbed much better than the whole seeds. It has a bit of a nutty flavor when eaten alone, but it virtually tasteless when mixed into foods.

Ground flax seed

 And now for something random...
This is what my summer has looked like.

No, do not fear, my husband and I are doing really well. I've been taking a Premarital Counseling class so I can be certified to counsel couples as they prepare for marriage. It involves a LOT of reading, including books like this that make for interesting conversations (or sympathetic stares) in the dentist office waiting room. Ha, that's okay, just another (humbling) sacrifice for a minister's calling, right? Hope your day is wonderful, fabulous and FLAXulous. :)

Peachy Jicama Salad

Do you ever eat jicama?

Jicama--AKA yambean, native of Mexico and South America, is similar to the potato (you can bake, steam, boil it), but you can also eat it raw (unlike the potato).

• 46 calories per cup
• 6 grams fiber (25% of your daily needs)
•  crisp, refreshing taste

Peachy Jicama Salad with Tangy Lime Dressing
Makes 2 sizeable salads
2 peaches
1 TB margarine
1 jicama 
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 lime
1 TB sugar or agave nectar
4 mint leaves, chopped

1) Slice peaches in half and take out the pit. Scoop out the hard flesh around the pits, too. Spread the flesh sides with margarine and put face down in the toaster oven. Bake for 10 minutes at 400 degrees.
2) In the meantime, peel the jicama. I used a knife and peeled it by hand, making slices downward. Cut the inside into bite-sized strips. Layer on two plates for serving.
3) Make the dressing: Combine lime juice, sugar and vinegar in a small cup/bowl and stir until sugar dissolves. 
4) When peaches are soft, remove from toaster and carefully slice into "O" shapes. Layer on top of the jicama. Then pour some of dressing on top of salad. Garnish with mint.


Hope your day's peachy! (Sorry, couldn't help myself.)