When Life Gives You Lemons...

...or, in this case, mealy textured peaches, make Peach Blueberry Crumbles!



We were out and about in the Amish Country last week and stopped at a roadside market for some fresh peaches. The ones they had for sale were marked "Jersey Peaches." The sad fact is that the peach crop in Eastern Ohio was wiped out by the late cold snaps we had, and Jersey peaches were all that they were carrying for sale. But my husband loves a good fresh peach, so we gave them a try. Disappointed doesn't even touch the feeling he had when he took the first bite. So, what to do with the peaches so they didn't have to be thrown away...



I went to Google and typed in "peach recipe" and up popped Peach & Blueberry Crumbles, from Barefoot Contessa at Home. Bingo! Peaches, blueberries and Ina Garten, my favorite TV cook. It doesn't get much better than that.



RECIPE:



For the fruit

• 6-8 fresh peaches
• 2 tsp grated lemon zest
• 2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup fresh blueberries

For the Crumble

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
  1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
  1/4 pound (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, diced
  

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

First I plunged the peaches into boiling water in my blancher for 30 seconds, then into ice water to loosen the skins, which peeled away easily. I sliced them into thick wedges and placed them in a bowl with the lemon zest, lemon juice, granulated sugar and flour, and tossed them well. Then I gently mixed in the blueberries, and let the fruit mixture sit for 5 minutes before dividing it up evenly among 6 ramekins. (mine were 7 ounce size-- 8 ounce would have been better.)

Then I made the topping by combining the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon and butter and working it into a sandy crumble with my fingers, and sprinkled it evenly over the fruit in the ramekins.



I put the ramekins on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and baked them for 40 minutes until the tops were brown and crisp and the juices were bubbly. I cooled them slightly and served them with a generous scoop of good vanilla ice cream.