I'm Ginger Peachy!

City Mouse Now Country Mouse, No. 2

Yes, I'm Ginger Peachy! After eating locally grown peaches for several days in a row, I decided to make peach preserves. Growing up in Burtonsville in the 70's, there was still lots of farming in that part of Montgomery County. We regularly drove down Peach Orchard Road, and yes, there was a peach orchard at the north end of the road. They had yellow peaches, white peaches, cling peaches and free-stones. It was a language and a season all its own and I got to relive a few memories.

      In making peach preserves, it is much easier to use free-stones to cling peaches. The terms refer to the way that the peach flesh adheres, or clings, to the peach pit. Cling peaches mature earlier in the peach season and it takes more effort to get the sweet fruit off the pit. Typically, we would buy the clings but they were only to accompany one's breakfast or for a peach cobbler. It was not until mid-July that we would enjoy the free-stones.

At this point, I can't remember my favorite variety of free-stone peaches but I do know that when that peach was in season, we made plenty of preserves. The peeling, chopping and cooking was then followed by the washing, sterilizing, and labeling. At the time, Mom and I choose the wax seal to boiling water bath as a method of sealing the sweet contents. The wax seal was as fun (although not always effective) but it was a great way to use old candles that were too small for the dinner table. Given that we have not lived at the cabin long enough to have short candles, I opted for sterilizing water bath this time. I must admit, after all the work it took to get the preserves to the jarring point, I was most worried that an inch of boiling water over the closed jam jars was going to ruin all my work. Much to my delight, it was not. What I discovered is that there are times when  following the directions actually work. 

    And isn't that what we learn in life? We try to preserve the sweet things that we enjoy now so that we can preserve them, and enjoy them later. We also learn that the wax seal method, while fun, is not as long lasting as the boiling water bath. So, I'm learning and growing and Ginger Peachy in WV!