Peaches Everywhere!

Two weeks ago, I got a huge blessing. PEACHES. Lots 'o peaches! My mother-in-law knows a wonderful lady who runs an orchard. Looooooong story, but because of the drought, the peaches tasted amazing, but weren't the size/standard of normal good years. So, we got them for free. F.R.E.E. my friends! I got an enormous tubfull, thanks to my sister-in-law who actually picked them for me. I wasn't able to go at the time they had set up to go out there, but the picking was quick and easy, and Eli estimated we had at least 10-12 pounds of peaches. Glorious.

And a lot of work! Ha! What does one do with all those peaches? Well, of course we ate and ate and ate them. And used them in our smoothie obsession. And then we blanched and peeled them. Yes, a bit more of a pain since they were smaller, but worth it? Yes.

I chopped a bunch of the blanched/frozen ones, prepped it into peach pie filling, and froze it in a freezer bag in my pie pan. The thought being that now, when the urge hits, I just need to make the pie crust, slide the filling in, and bake away! I also took several cups of those same pre-prepped ones and made this deliciousness ...

PEACH JAM. Yum. Need I say more? Probably won't last too long around here = )

And then we sliced a ton, with the skin on, and froze them for smoothies. And boy, is it good like that! When they are still frozen and tossed in the blender with whatever else we have on hand, it comes out with this amazing ice cream creaminess consistency ... I have a few already! So glad I will have many more in the upcoming months!

The last day of slicing and freezing, Eli was slaving away on them while I was nursing. Finally finished! Although so worth it, we were soooooooo glad to get it done with! So blessed with those peaches!