Perfect Peach Pie

This is my second year as a home-owner, and therefore a yard-owner. Included in our purchase from my parents-in-law is a dwarf Lemon Alberta peach tree. It's so amazing to watch the tree blossom in spring, and brings a whole new meaning to the word "suspense," every time there is a chance of a spring frost or - gasp! - spring snow! I watched, agonized, and prayed over my little peach tree, and was blessed with an abundance of little green marbles after the blossoms all fell off. 

Last year I did some research about thinning peaches, to ensure a more even harvest from one year to the next, and also to allow each individual fruit to grow bigger. What I learned is to thin the peaches to one every 4-6 inches, when they are about the size of marbles. It seems like a lot of fruit being pulled before having a chance to grow, and it is. You're thinning easily at least half of what is on the tree. But the end result is worth it, with bigger fruit and not having to worry if this year is a year of plenty or a year of scarcity. After the thinning, it's just a waiting game. 

Knowing when the peaches are ripe isn't really too difficult; just watch for the birds to start flocking to the tree! Seriously though, I've been watching my little peach tree all summer as the fruit gets bigger, and slowly turned from green to rosy-yellow and gold. Every few days I'd check the fruit for tenderness, but they were still pretty hard and some even had green on them. Then, on Saturday, I picked one. The first peach! It was soft, and after I peeled the fuzzy skin off and sliced it, Richard and I tasted, and decided it was PERFECT. So I promptly grabbed a box and went out to pick more peaches. But then I realized, a lot of the peaches were still pretty firm; now, peaches will ripen off the tree, but I want to leave them there as long as possible. I bottle most of mine, so we can have fruit all winter and spring, so I don't want the fruit too soft, but I don't want it too green either. So I called my sister-in-law Rebecca, and she said that if the fruit comes off easily, without tugging, it's ripe. So that is my guideline for picking the peaches. 

The question then becomes, aside from bottling for winter, what do you do with all these fresh, beautiful peaches? You could make jam, syrup, but my favorite is a good, cold, cream cheese peach pie. Here is a recipe my family and I love.

Cream Cheese Peach Dessert

Ingredients:

about 2 dozen medium peaches, peeled and sliced*

2 1/2 sleeves graham crackers

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted

4 Tbsp cornstarch

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup water

4 Tbsp lemon juice

12-16 oz. cream cheese

1/2 cup powdered sugar

Crush graham crackers (I like to use the blender or food processor for this) and combine with 1/3 cup sugar and melted butter. Press into a greased 13x9 pan and place in the freezer to set. 

Combine cornstarch with 1 1/2 cups sugar, and add water, lemon juice, and 1 cup pureed peach slices. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently; boil until thickened and clear (see photo below). Remove from heat, cool.

Beat together cream cheese and powdered sugar, using more cream cheese if you like a thicker layer on the crust. Spread on the graham cracker crust, and top with remaining peach slices. Pour cooled puree over the top, and chill until ready to serve. 

So, there you have it. A delicious, no-bake, creamy, peachy dessert everyone will love.

*Blanch peaches for 60-90 seconds in boiling water, then transfer to cold water. This will make pitting and peeling much easier and faster.