Today in this series installment of Tastes of the South,we will be looking at the prettiest peach of the South. Yes,thats right I am talking about the peach state of Georgia. So it would rightfully be fitting to include some peach recipes in this mytake. So since Georgia's state crop is the peach all but one recipe is going to be about peaches. The other will be featuring Georgia's other big crop,and former president Jimmy Carter's favorite, peanuts. Which speaking as a matter of fact President Jimmy Carter is from Georgia.
Peach Cobbler.
8 fresh peaches - peeled, pitted and sliced into thin wedges
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
1/4 cup boiling water
MIX TOGETHER:
3 tablespoons white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Directions
Prep
20 m
Cook
40 m
Ready In
1 h
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
In a large bowl, combine peaches, 1/4 cup white sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon juice, and cornstarch. Toss to coat evenly, and pour into a 2 quart baking dish. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine flour, 1/4 cup white sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar, baking powder, and salt. Blend in butter with your fingertips, or a pastry blender, until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in water until just combined.
Remove peaches from oven, and drop spoonfuls of topping over them. Sprinkle entire cobbler with the sugar and cinnamon mixture. Bake until topping is golden, about 30 minutes.
Footnotes
Tip: Aluminum foil can be used to keep food moist, cook it evenly, and make clean-up easier.
Peach Pie
Pie Crust:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for bench and cutters
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 sticks chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
4 tablespoons ice water, plus more as needed
Filling:
10 ripe but firm peaches
1 lemon, juiced
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon or pinch ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
3 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
1 egg
Special equipment: fluted pizza cutter or fluted ravioli cutter
Directions
Cook's Note: You can increase the amount of sugar to 1 1/4 cups, depending upon the sweetness of the peaches. Peak summer peaches will only need 1 cup.
For the crust: In a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, salt and cold butter.
Pulse the processor until the mixture resembles fine sand. Remove the lid and add the ice water to the mixture. Run the processor just until the mixture rolls itself into a little ball. If the mixture is a bit dry, add more ice water by the tablespoonful until it comes together. Gather the dough into a ball. With a bench scraper or knife, divide the mixture evenly in half. Shape each half into a disk. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and chill at least 30 minutes. At this point you can keep the wrapped dough in the refrigerator for a few days or freeze for later use.
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
Flour your rolling pin and roll out 1 pie crust to about a 12-inch round and drape over a 9 1/2-inch fluted pie plate. Roll out the other pie crust to about a 10-inch round, and cut this into 1-inch strips with a fluted pizza cutter.
For the filling: Peel and cut the peaches into 1/4-inch thick slices (you should have about 7 cups) and toss with the lemon juice and almond extract in a large bowl. Whisk the flour, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in another bowl, making sure there are no lumps. Stir the flour mixture into the peaches and mix well. Pour the peaches into the pie crust. Scatter with the pieces of butter. Top with the lattice strips. Brush away any flour underneath the lattice to make sure it seals well. Crimp the edges to seal. Beat the egg with 1 teaspoon water and brush the lattice and edges with the egg wash.
Pop in the oven and bake for 10 minutes, and then lower the heat to 350 degrees F and bake until the crust gets brown, about 50 minutes more. If the edges brown too fast, cover them with strips of aluminum foil about halfway through baking. Cool about 30 minutes before serving.
Boiled Peanuts
2 pounds in-shell raw Virginia or Valencia peanuts
3 ounces kosher salt
3 gallons water
Directions
Wash the peanuts in cool water until the water runs clear. Soak in cool water for 30 minutes to loosen any remaining dirt.
Drain and rinse the peanuts. Add the peanuts to a 12-quart pot along with the salt and 3 gallons of water. Stir well. Cover and cook on high for 4 hours. Check the texture of the peanut at this point for doneness. When done, boiled peanuts should have a similar texture to a cooked dry bean. It should hold its shape, but not crunch when bitten. Add more water throughout the cooking process, if needed. If necessary, continue cooking for 3 to 4 hours longer.
Drain the peanuts and store in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
*Cook's note: The cooking time can vary greatly depending on how fresh the peanuts are. The fresher the peanut, the less time it will take to cook.
These are also very popular here in the Carolinas as well especially down in the Coastal plains .
So these are just some famous recipes from Georgia. The next time in Tastes of the South we will be exploring recipes from the two Southern Commonwealths Virginia and Kentucky. I hope you enjoyed this installment. If you have any ideas for future recipes for Tastes of the South please feel free to comment.
What Girls & Guys Said
Opinion
2Opinion
Yum! I grew up in the South and boiled peanuts are my FAVORITE! Can't wait to try your recipe :)
I lived in Savannah, Florida, Virginia, Ohio and all I have to say is fuck everything east of the Mississippi
That peach pie looks delicious