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Peaches and bourbon, that’s my jam

Apparently I didn’t have enough of using booze to make food after last week. 

This week’s excuse is only that I have been wanting to make this peach and bourbon jam recipe for years and for some reason didn’t think about the fact that although it called for a saucepan that it would almost certainly fit in my little Le Creuset. 

Peach and bourbon jam ingredients.

Plus, I really like bourbon and peaches. Especially as I both mourn the end of summer and welcome the first hints of autumn. 

This wonderful peach bourbon jam offers a good balance of both summer’s sweetness and cooling fall flavors. 

I love bourbon pretty much any time of year, but with the cool comes the welcome sensation of a good whiskey burning through my insides. Peaches, of course, are peaking, and I can’t get enough of one of my favorite summer fruits while they’re in season. 

The only thing I forgot about is my anxiety when it comes to getting things to an exact temperature. 

From the first time I tried to make salt water taffy as a tween to my first personal blog on peanut brittle, I have a long habit of mostly screwing up this type of thing. 

While the end result worked great (whew!), it was supposed to get to temperature in 6 minutes … but the recipe also warned to adjust the temp as needed. Me, I read that as turning things down, but I was disappointed when after 10 minutes, I was still about 15 degrees shy of the goal. I turned things back up and voila, I could literally see the change in texture to something that actually resembled a jam. 

So, I did cook things down a little bit more than the 2 cup yield, but I got a peachy vanilla-y jam, and that’s just peachy keen for me. 

All that’s missing is the peanut butter.

Here’s what I did, following an Epicurious recipe I’ve had saved for years: 

Ingredients 

  • ½ vanilla bean
  • 1 lb. ripe but firm yellow peaches, pitted and cut into ½-inch pieces
  • 1 c. sugar
  • ½ c. peeled and grated Granny Smith apple
  • 1 c. bourbon 
  • 1 T. bottled lemon juice (the recipe specified the bottled for the preservative qualities)

Directions 

Place two small plates in the freezer to chill (for testing thickness later). 

Cut vanilla bean in half lengthwise, and scrape out seeds into a 9-inch coated cast-iron skillet. Add the rest of the vanilla bean, and then stir in the peaches, sugar, apple, bourbon, and lemon juice. Mix together, cover, and let sit for 20 minutes. 

Turn on stovetop to medium-high heat, and bring the mixture to a boil, stirring often. Once sugar is dissolved, reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the peaches are softened, about 10 to 15 minutes. 

Remove from heat, and crush the fruit with a potato masher until mostly smooth. 

Return mixture to the stovetop, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring often and adjusting heat if necessary, until the mixture reaches 217 to 220 degrees, about 6 to 10 minutes.

To test consistency, place a teaspoon of the jam on the chilled plate, and freeze for 2 minutes. Then, drag your finger through the jam; if your finger leaves a distinct trail, it is ready, but if it’s still runny, continue to simmer the jam for another 1 to 3 minutes, and test again. 

Meanwhile, place two 1-cup mason jars, or large mason jar under hot running water until heated through, 1 to 2 minutes, and shake dry. Use a funnel and ladle to portion out the hot jam into the hot jars. Let cool to room temperature, cover, and refrigerate until the jam is set, about 12 to 24 hours later. (Jam can be refrigerated for up to 2 months.) Enjoy with some toast, or use it to make a tasty PB&J sammy.

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Treat yourself with some cobbler

I figured it’s the appropriate time of year to make a cobbler. In fact, I think it’s only because my sweetie now does the shopping for us that I haven’t stopped to stare at the summer produce and be reminded sooner.

Peach and blackberry cobbler ingredients.

Since I didn’t grow up with a family cobbler recipe—our desserts tended to be store-bought cookies—every time I make it, I go searching for anything that strikes my fancy. This time, I happened to be going through Taste of Home when I came across a recipe from an Iowan. (Yay!)

I was intrigued but was ultimately won over when the recipe included my two favorite summer fruits: peaches and blackberries (it was actually a berry mix but blackberries were listed first, and honestly, I just made it with blackberries).

Plus, it had cardamom, and I almost never have excuses to use this most exciting of spices.

I may have overdone it by adding a full 1 t. of cardamom when the recipe called for just ¼ t., but I *really* like it, so I didn’t mind and my sweetie has been enjoying bowlfuls for breakfast (don’t judge!) alongside me without complaint. My other adaptation was using lemon zest in place of orange zest in the topping, and that worked well for my tastes as well.

I also went ahead and used my Le Creuset that measures 9 in. not 10 in., as the recipe called for. It all fit like a charm, though the liquid did bubble over a little in the oven and we got the delightful aroma of burnt sugar. Not the worst deal but perhaps a 10 in. skillet is the wiser course.

There’s fruit underneath all that, I promise!

Here’s what I did, adapting slightly:

Ingredients

For the fruit mix

  • ½ c. sugar
  • 3 T. cornstarch
  • 1 t. ground cinnamon
  • ¼ to 1 t. ground cardamom, to taste
  • 6 c. peaches (6 to 8 peaches), sliced
  • 2 c. blackberries (about 12 oz./two small containers)
  • Juice from ½ lemon

For the topping

  • 1 c. all-purpose flour
  • ¼ c. sugar
  • Zest from 1 lemon
  • ¾ t. baking powder
  • ¼ t. salt
  • ¼ t. baking soda
  • 3 T. cold butter
  • ¾ c. buttermilk
  • Vanilla ice cream, for serving, optional

Directions 

Heat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together the sugar, cornstarch, and spices. Add the peaches, blackberries, and lemon juice. Toss to combine, and then transfer to a 9- to 10-inch cast iron skillet (10-inch probably preferred).

In a medium bowl, bring together the first six topping ingredients (flour, sugar, lemon zest, baking powder, salt, and baking soda). Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or two knives or your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the buttermilk, and stir until just moistened. Drop by tablespoonfuls over the fruit mixture.

Bake uncovered until topping is golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes. Serve warm, preferably with vanilla ice cream, and enjoy!