Peach Season

The end of peach season is bittersweet for me. On the one hand, I'm looking forward to saying good bye to summer, and hello to fall. I'm eager for cooler, less humid weather. I'm ready to wear warmer clothes, including handknit sweaters. I look forward to the autumn flowers and the change of leaf color. I always like to see the harvest displays appear - pumpkins, squash, scarecrows. But I'll miss those summer fruits and vegetables that I buy at the local farm stand.



When I went to buy peaches last Friday it was a challenge to find enough that weren't bruised, squishy and still had a firmness and fresh peach perfume. I knew the end was in sight. I finally picked out 8, thinking that I would bake the last cobbler of the season. I took them home and set them on the counter to ripen.



This morning, I got up early and started my cobbler. I made the little "x" with my knife at the base of each peach and dropped it in boiling water. I transfered each peach into ice water and began the surprisingly easy job of slipping the skins from the fruit. They sliced like a dream and the smell, and color overwhelmed me. That pale orange with traces of rosey reds made me long for summer again - even though I'm ready for fall. I poured the slices into a buttered pan, added my topping and put the lot into the oven. It didn't take long for the house to begin to smell of warm peaches with a hint of cinamon.



At 1:00 p.m. the Mah Jongg ladies will arrive and I'll serve them the warm peach cobbler. This is a fitting way to say farewell to peach season, and to welcome fall - sharing my cobbler with friends, and spending the afternoon playing Mah Jongg.