August Peaches

The old peach tree gave us its all this year. Big, juicy, and ruddy, these peaches continue to come on even now that the season has almost drawn to a close.

Peaches are such a fussy fruit to handle. They bruise easily, and draw beetles and birds hungry to sip their nectar. Their tender, ripe flesh goes from ideal to overripe in an instant.

I went ahead and grabbed the largest and best ones immediately before they started dropping to the ground--the chicken zone.

My variety is a "Cling", which means the stone doesn't twist out for easy processing. Rather, they must be pared away into slices with the seed interfering. They are wonderful to eat out of hand, though. Such a mellow, summery flavor.

In order to capture their deliciousness at the peak ripeness, I cut them all up and preserved them in a light syrup.

Lightly spiced with cinnamon and vanilla, the resulting peach sauce is dreamy over vanilla ice cream or on toast. It makes a welcome holiday gift when the days are shorter, like a sunburst sending golden rays from behind winter's clouds.

All my best to you and yours,

Love,cat
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