Precious Peaches

Peaches around these parts go very quickly. They are so delicious and everybody buys a ton of them, so you just have to grab them quick during the 3 weeks or so that they are on. I got a bushel this year so we had enough for peach cobbler, peach smoothies, peaches 'n cream, and I was still able to bottle some, freeze some and make a little freezer jam. I actually still have some peach jam from last year!
This was the first time I've ever bottled anything without someone helping me, and it worked! All bottles sealed successfully. These will be so great to have for breakfast in the morning with cottage cheese or granola, or for peach pie and peach crisp, of course. :)

Since we don't live in Florida anymore, and any power outages are usually less than an hour, if they occur at all, I like to freeze a ton of peaches so I can have that fresh peach taste all year long.
Getting peaches ready to freeze is really easy. You don't have to peel them all. Simply plunge a few at a time in boiling water for 30-60 seconds and then into a sink full of cold ice water to stop the cooking process. This separates the skin from the flesh of the fruit and you just pull it off. Then you just take the pit out, and slice it up how you want. I put mine in sandwich bags and topped them off with some apple juice so each bag was completely full. Then I put them in gallon freezer bags and tossed them in the freezer.

Problem is, I already want to get some back out and eat them!