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In honor of “National Pear and Pineapple Month” — Part 2

In last week’s “Tasty Tuesdays” post, I mentioned that there would be TWO featured recipes in honor of “National Pear and Pineapple Month”. In that post, I presented a recipe which featured the first of these tasty fruits: PEARS. So… This means that today’s “Tasty Tuesdays” post will feature the other one: PINEAPPLE! Here goes…

Pineapple-Bulgur Wheat Salad

“This fresh and sweetly satisfying salad makes a friendly lunch all by itself. If you need to prepare it ahead, try to leave at least the avocado and the pineapple till the last moment; this one doesn’t keep.”

Ingredients

1 cup water

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup raw bulgur wheat

1 medium avocado

1 cup fresh pineapple chunks

1/2 cup chopped red bell pepperr

2 inside stalks celery, chopped, OR 1/2 cup cucumber, chopped

3-4 scallions, thinly sliced

chopped chives

1 Tablespoon oil

3 Tablespoons lemon juice OR 2 Tablespoons cider vinegar

Directions

Bring water to boil with salt. Add bulgur and return to a boil. Remove from heat, cover pot tightly, and set aside for 15 minutes or until water is absorbed. Cool to room temperature.

Peel and cube avocado and stir into pineapple chunks so that the juice from the pineapple will keep the avocado from discoloring. Combine with bell pepper, celery, scallions, oil and lemon juice or vinegar. Stir in bulgur wheat and serve.

Makes 6 generous servings.

So, there you have it: Pineapple-Bulgur Wheat Salas — a vegetarian recipe in honor of both “Vegetarian Month” AND “National Pear and Pineapple Month”!

I don’t know about you, but I don’t happen to have any “bulgur wheat” in my pantry. Consequently, I did a quick online search: “substitutions for bulgur wheat”, and I got quite a number of search results, including an article (from alsothecrumbsplease.com) entitled “10 Best Bulgur Substitutes for Making Tasty Dishes”. So… I’m going to try this dish using one of the following 10 substitutes for bulgur wheat:

  1. Cracked wheat
  2. Wheat berries
  3. Farro
  4. Whole wheat couscous
  5. Barley
  6. Quinoa
  7. Buckwheat
  8. Shelled hemp seeds
  9. Millet
  10. Amaranth

At this point, I think I’ll be trying either barley or quinoa since I happen to have both of them in the pantry. One important thing to note is that the last five options (6-10) are the “5 best gluten-free bulgur substitues”, according to the article’s author. So… If you have a sensitivity to gluten (which, thankfully, I don’t), please use one of the last five options. In any case, I hope you give this recipe a try — either as originally written OR using one of the ten substitutes for the the bulgur wheat.

As always, I’d love to hear what you think about this week’s featured recipe and/or about your favorite recipes that feature PINEAPPLE, so please take a moment to leave a comment below. In the meantime…

Take care.

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In honor of “National Pear and Pineapple Month”…

As I mentioned in the first “Tasty Tuesdays” post of October last week, October is “Vegetarian Month”, so all of the recipes featured in this month’s “Tasty Tuesdays” posts will feature recipes from one of my long-time favorite vegetarian cookbooks: “Laurel’s Kitchen Recipes”. In addition to October being “Vegetarian Month”, this month is also “National Pear and Pineapple Month”, so the next couple of “Tasty Tuesdays” posts will feature… You guessed it… pears and pineapples, beginning with PEARS! So read on for a simple recipe which features this tasty fruit.

In the above-mentioned cookbook, there was a section called (intriguingly enough) “Innocent Sweets”, and here’s what Laurel Robertson (and her co-authors Carol Flinders and Brian Ruppenthal) had to say about PEARS:

“In winter, Bosc pears and Winter Nelis are often available at bargain prices. Even if they are rock-hard, bake them like yams, for the sweetest, most delicious, and easiest dessert imaginable. They don’t want stuffing like apples; you just stand them on their bottom in a pan (line it with brown paper if you want to save scrubbing later) and bake at about 350 degrees F for 45 minutes or so, until the syrupy juice had broken out and the pear is soft. We usually serve them as is, but you might want to make a gingery sauce or pass toasted nuts or feta cheese to nibble alongside.”

Well… That wasn’t much of a recipe, was it? However, it sounds like an excellent way to enjoy “rock-hard” pears! I don’t know about you, but I can’t even count the number of “rock-hard” pears that I’ve brought home and hoped that they would ripen quickly. Had I read — and remembered — Laurel’s “recipe for Baked Pears back then, I could have been enjoying this “innocent sweets” treat much sooner!

However, my first thought for serving them wasn’t what Laurel et al suggested — serving ’em “as is” or with “toasted nuts or feta cheese” (a cheese I still need to try, actually). Instead, I thought about serving them with a scoop of vanilla ice cream — though I guess that really isn’t a vegetarian option since “ice cream” isn’t even mentioned in Laurel’s cookbook! So… I guess I’ll toast some almonds and/or give feta cheese a try. I’ll certainly let y’all know what I decide to have as an accompaniment to my Baked Pears.

As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts about Baked Pears, this week’s featured recipe, so please take a moment to leave a comment below. Oh, and if you have any favorite recipes that feature pears, I’d love it if you would share them with me, too! In the meantime…

Take care!

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In honor of “National Chili Month”…

As I’m sure y’all know, I enjoy featuring recipes that can be used to celebrate both “national days” (National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day, for example) and “national months” (July’s National Hot Dog Month). Well… This month is no different. According to my trusted source, October happens to be, among other things:

  • National Chili Month;
  • Spinach Lovers Month; and
  • Pear and Pineapple Month.

In addition, October is also “Vegetarian Month”! So… I thought I would explore vegetarian cooking in this month’s “Tasty Tuesdays” recipes. Through the years, I’ve known a few people who consider themselves to be be vegetarians, and because of this, I’ve purchased (or was given) a couple of books about vegetarian cooking, including one titled, “Laurel’s Kitchen” which gives readers an overview of vegetarian cooking, and another one titled “Laurel’s Kitchen Recipes”. It is this last book that will be the inspiration — and source — for all of this month’s featured “Tasty Tuesdays” recipes.

By the way, I hope you didn’t just freak out when I mentioned that all of this month’s featured recipes will be vegetarian. To be honest, I probably would’ve had I not read “Laurel’s Kitchen Recipes” myself. I say this because my very first experience with vegetarian cooking was way back during my early college days when a deaf friend of mine introduced me to TOFU, a typical ingredient in vegetarian cooking. Back then, I was REALLY turned off by the taste of tofu, and to this day, I absolutely REFUSE to eat TOFU — even though I’ve heard that it can be quite tasty if prepared properly. So… You will NOT find any recipes that list TOFU as an ingredient NOR will you find any recipes that include plant-based protein — like “fake bacon”. In addition, you can rest assured that this month’s featured recipes won’t have any “exotic” ingredients that you may not be able to find in your local grocery store.

With that confession out of the way, the first recipe that I’ll be featuring for “Vegetarian Month” will be one that can also be used to celebrate “National Chili Month”, and it is…

Chili con Elote

Basic and classic. The corn adds a lot, but when it isn’t in season we make the dish without and it’s just great.

The chili powder here is just enough for flavor without fierceness. If chili without tears isn’t chili to you, use more, or add cayenne.

Ingredients

1 onion, chopped

1 clove garlic

2 Tablespoons oil

1 green pepper, diced

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin powder

1 cup chopped tomato, or 2 Tablespoons tomato paste

1 cup fresh corn

4 cups cooked kidney, black, or pinto beans

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon oregano

Directions

Saute onion and garlic clove in oil until onion is soft. Crush garlic clove. Add green pepper and spices. Saute another 2 or 3 minutes. Add tomatoes and corn if you have it. Mash 2 cups of the beans and add to pot along with whole beans and salt and oregano. Simmer 30 minutes.

Serves 6

So, there you have it: “Chili con Elote”, the first featured recipe of “Vegetarian Month” as well as “National Chili Month”. And did you notice that there was NO TOFU in it? Just wholesome foods like onions, garlic, green peppers, tomatoes, corn, beans, and spices. Nothing “exotic”! This is one of the things I look for in recipes for vegetarian cooking! If a recipe has TOFU or anything else that wouldn’t be in my pantry, then I’ll usually pass on that recipe.

This month, it is my hope that you’ll give vegetarian cooking a try. (“Meatless Mondays”, anyone?) If you do join me in celebrating “Vegetarian Month”, I’d love to hear about your experience. Looking forward to reading your comments!

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In honor of not one, but TWO “national days” — Another “twofer” of recipes!

In honor of today being “National Cherry Popsicle Day” and tomorrow being “National Peach Day), this “Tasty Tuesdays” post is going to be another “twofer” — with not one, but TWO featured recipes! The first of these will be “Homemade Cherry Ice Pops With Only 3 Ingredients”, and the second one will be a recipe for peach cobbler. Both of these recipes are definitely going to be TASTY ways to celebrate these two “national days” — whether you celebrate them on the actual day or at some point this month! Without further ado, here are this week’s featured recipes:

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In honor of “National Cuban Sandwich Day”: A “twofer” of recipes!

Had I noticed that August 23rd was “National Cuban Sandwich Day” last year, I probably wouldn’t have given it a second thought. However, that changed when I took a ROAD TRIP down to “Flordida” to attend my daughter’s college graduation! During the time we spent in the Clearwater/Tampa area of the state, we tried to avoid “national chain restaurants” as much as we could, and in doing so, we found a restaurant called “The Cuban Sandwich Restaurant”. Since I’d never had a “Cuban sandwich” before, I decided to order the restaurant’s namesake, and I was VERY pleasantly surprised! While there, I learned quite a bit about this kind of sandwich, and by the time I returned home, I knew I wanted to feature this YUMMY sandwich in a “Tasty Tuesdays” post!

Continue reading “In honor of “National Cuban Sandwich Day”: A “twofer” of recipes!”
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In honor of “National Creamsicle Day”: Orange Creamsicle Popsicle

As soon as I discovered that August 14th is “National Creamsicle Day”, I knew I had to feature a recipe for homemade orange creamsicles, especially after Sweet Thing recently brought home a box of orange creamsicles that I remember enjoying as a child. With all of the “who knows what” that goes into processed food these days, I wanted to find a recipe that contained only ingredients that I could pronounce and were natural. After doing a quick online search, I think I found just the one from Carrie Barnard at the “Desserts on a Dime” Web site! Only three ingredients are needed, and “the orange cream flavor is decadent,” according to Carrie. Without further ado, here’s Carrie’s recipe for homemade orange creamsicles.

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August 2025’s “7th of the month” Journal Post

Welcome to another “7th of the month” journal post, which will highlight the previous month — from the 7th of July through the 6th of August. As I’ve done ever since I started writing this kind of post, I’ll be following the same pattern — by discussing events that fell into the following three categories:

  • Holler,
  • Persona, and, of course,
  • Writing.

Holler Happenings

Hello, again, from “my holler in Kentucky”! This month, I spent time watching a few home design shows (including “My Design Rules”, a series that was filmed in South Africa), and in so doing, I got some good design ideas. In addition, I asked one of my “AI assistants” about interior design, and I got lots more ideas for the holler house. Then, on 11 July 2025, Sweet Thing and I mad another home purchase: a BIG (16 cubic foot) chest freezer! Consequently, I spent quite a bit of time this month making room for it in the pantry — the only place it would fit. After I made room for that BIG freezer, we moved “my” freezer from the laundry room into the kitchen, where the freezer Sweet Thing got from his parents used to be before he gave it to one of our neighbors, who had lost theirs in a garage fire a while back. So, yeah… Lots of shuffling of freezers this month. The only other “exciting” bit of news to report was that one of “the boys CAUGHT A MOUSE… in the pantry where I was working! Sweet Thing was asleep when the catch was made, so I had to wake him up to deal with Kasha’s “catch” since I’m way too squeamish to deal with that aspect of “the circle of life”. Needless to say, he was a bit grumpy, but he dealt with the situation and then went back to bed. Kasha’s definitely a good mouser!

Personal Events

As I mentioned in June 2025’s “7th of the month” post, I started yet another “quilt-along” class on 10 June 2025, so I spent the rest of June and into July working on “Pine Valley”, this summer’s “quilt-along” quilt. “Sticks and Stones” is the name of this quilt, and it is actually a “first” for me: This is the first time that I’ve used a “jelly roll” (a collection of 42 2.5-inch-wide strips of fabric in lots of different colors and prints that are “coordinated”) to make a quilt. It was definitely an experience, primarily because I had to get used to mixing and (not) matching different prints together! I was able to finish the quilt top for “Pine Valley” this month AND show it off to one of our neighbors, a couple who have made some quilts in the past. While there, I also asked them more about how that had made their quilts. I found out that they used a sewing machine to piece their quilt tops together (like I’ve been doing) and that they did the actual quilting (putting together the three layers of the quilt: pieced top, batting, and backing) by hand — like the Amish do! So… That is what I eventually want to be able to do! I figure that “if they can do it, then so can I”! Before I reach that point, though, I’m going to use “Pine Valley” as a lesson in learning how to do the quilting myself since I’ve always had Liz, the “quilt-along” class instructor, do the quilting for me on her long-arm sewing machine. I’m going to have Liz teach me how to use my own sewing machine to quilt “Pine Valley”. Only time will tell how successful I’m going to be in this endeavor, so wish me luck!

Moving along… In addition to asking my “AI assistant” for information about home design (as mentioned above), I also asked about creating a capsule wardrobe, so I’m in the process of going through my closets — to figure out what fits, what doesn’t, and what specific pieces I still need to complete a capsule wardrobe for the upcoming seasons, specifically fall since summer is almost over now.

On 13 July, I was outside making room for a metal shelving unit that I took out of the pantry (to make room for our new BIG chest) when I got a VERY unpleasant surprise. I moved a cardboard box, and then I got stung TWICE by an unhappy flying “squatter” — some kind of flying AND STINGING “insect” (Wasp, yellow jacket… I’m not sure which it was since it happened SO FAST.) that had taken up residence there! First, the bugger stung my left pinkie, and then it flew up and stung my forearm, and man, did it hurt! It didn’t take long before both my hand and forearm were so SWOLLEN! I ended up “sleeping the sting away” for a few days, VERY grateful that it was my left hand/arm that were affected — instead of my right/writing hand!

On another health-related note, I had a tooth extracted — after having a toothache for a few days. The last time I saw a dentist, she kept telling the dental hygienist (instead of Me!) “That tooth has got to go!”, BUT she never gave me the referral to the local oral surgeon, so I could have it removed. Thankfully, Sweet Thing gave me the name and contact information of the oral surgeon who had pulled one of his teeth a while back, so I was able to schedule an appointment with him and then have the tooth pulled (I think “extracted” is probably the more precise term) the following week.

Las winter, I started a tradition of “binge watching” holiday movies on Netflix, and this month, I started another tradition related to Netflix: “binge watching” the movies that they’ve labeled as “Leaving soon” — those movies that have a deadline for watching before they are removed from the Netflix Web site. This month, the deadline was July 31st, so I went through all of Netflix’s offerings and made a list of all the movies that were going to be gone after the end of July. Then, I put the names of those that interested me onto slips of paper and put ’em into a jar. Whenever I was in the mood to watch a movie (almost a daily occurrence), I would draw out a slip and then watch that movie — sometimes with popcorn and a soda and other times with dinner. I can’t remember how many movies I watched during this month’s “Leaving soon” movie marathon, but I enjoyed almost all of ’em so much so that I’ll probably be continuing this tradition for as long as I have access to Netflix!

A “7th of the month” post wouldn’t be complete without mentioning family. I enjoyed several lengthy phone calls with my “darlin’ daughter”, including one before they headed up to Sequoia National Park for their annual family camping trip as well as one after they got back home. It sounded as though they had yet another enjoyable trip AND had a “first”! This trip was the first time that my “darlin’ daughter” was able to experience a cave (“Crystal Cave”) in the area, one that I didn’t even know existed! From the photos she shared with me, it was definitely a sight to behold, AND it makes me want to check out some of the caves Kentucky has, including Mammoth Caves (which my daughter has visited but I haven’t) and a more local one, too. As far as that “favorite (and only) son of mine” is concerned, I sent him birthday greetings — both a birthday card and an e-mail message. In addition to sending my son birthday greetings, I also sent my sister and my two aunts e-mail messages in honor of National Sisters Day (08/03/25), which I hope they all appreciated.

And on that note, I’ll move onto the third, and final, category in August 2025’s “7th of the month” post: my writing!

Writing

Since I had so much fun “chatting” with my “AI assistant”, I asked it to come up with possible plots for short stories — both Amish and historical romance. Who knows… I might be able to turn one of those plot ideas into something I can then publish — either on my author Web site or the more traditional way. As with my quilting, only time will tell how successful I’ll be in this endeavor.

In addition to receiving possible plots for short stories from my “AI assistant”, I also thought of a few ideas of my own. During a recent “quilt-along” class, I got an idea for an Amish romance that I think I’m going to pursue in the coming weeks and months as I work to go from idea to finished manuscript! In addition to this story idea, I’ve also got a couple of ideas for new journal posts to feature on my author Web site, so stay tuned for more information about both my Amish romance story idea and the new journal posts!

Since reading and writing go hand in hand, I’m always on the look-out for new books to read, and I discovered a series of children’s books through one of my nightstand books: the Betsy-Tacy series by Maud Hart Lovelace. Since I’d read that particular entry many times and was curious each time this series was mentioned, I did a bit of onine research about it, and I discovered that this series of books is autobiographical in nature — in much the same way that the “Little House” series of books by Laura Ingalls Wilder was for her. So… I’m now even more curious about this series of books! Thankfully, the series (of ten books) is available for purchase through Amazon (What isn’t these days?), so I think this series of books will make an enjoyable birthday and/or St. Nicholas Day present for myself!

On that note, I’m going to close August 2025’s “7th of the month post. Hope you enjoyed this glimpse into my personal (AND professional) life. and will stay tuned for yet another one soon. As always, I look forward to hearing from you! In the meantime… Take care.

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In honor of “National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day”: Outrageous Chocolate Chip Cookies

In last month’s series of “Tasty Tuesdays” posts, I featured recipes related to several of July’s “national months”, including National Grilling Month (Best Beef Kabobs Marinade) and National Hot Dog Month (Homemade Beanie Weenies). This month, I thought I’d feature recipes related to several of August’s “national days”, so August’s first “Tasty Tuesdays” post features a recipe in celebration of “National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day”! Who doesn’t love an excuse to make this delicious treat?

Even though “National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day” was officially yesterday (08/04/25), I am going to share a recipe whose name practically shouts “YUMMY!”. This is a recipe from “The Essential Amish Cookbook” by Lovina Eicher. Without further ado, here’s Lovina’s recipe for “Outrageous Chocolate Chip Cookies”.


Outrageous Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
2 cups lard, shortening, or butter
4 eggs
e cups peanut butter
4 cups flour
2 cups quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats
4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
12 ounces chocolate chips



Directions

In a large bowl, cream together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, lard (or shortening or butter), and eggs until well blended. Add the peanut butter, flour, oats, baking soda, and salt. Mix on medium speed until well blended. Fold chocolate chips into mixture. Refrigerate dough for 1 hour.

Roll dough into balls and press lightly onto baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10-15 minutes, or until slightly browned. Let stand on baking sheet for a few minutes after removing from oven, then cool on wire racks, parchment paper, or paper towels.


“Of all the chocolate chip recipes we make, this is the children’s favorite!”



So, there you have it: Lovina’s recipe for Outrageous Chocolate Chip Cookies. I’m sure this will be the next recipe for chocolate chip cookies that I make. I love the addition of peanut butter, and I suspect that “Sweet Thing” will love this recipe because of it. Only time will tell, though…

As always, if you decide to give this recipe a try, I’d love to find out what you thought of it, so please take a moment to leave me a comment below. Looking forward to hearing from you! In the meantime… Take care!


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Surprise (or not)! A FIFTH “Tasty Tuesdays” post!!

Because this is one of those months that has FIVE Tuesdays in it, I’m going to be sharing a FIFTH recipe with you. I figured since I started the month by celebrating “National Grilling Month”, ending it with another grillin’ recipe would be appropriate, AND since I’ve been really into kabobs, I am going to be sharing with you yet another tasty kabobs recipe. So… Without further ado, here it is:

Continue reading: Surprise (or not)! A FIFTH “Tasty Tuesdays” post!!

Hawaiian Teriyaki Chicken Skewers

(from: houseofnasheats.com)

These Hawaiian Teriyaki Chicken Skewers are a delicious, easy, healthy summer dinner that is as flavorful as it is colorful! Made with a simple homemade teriyaki sauce recipe, red, green and yellow peppers, red onions, sweet grilled pineapple, and tender, juicy chicken, everybody will be happy to have these kabobs for dinner!

Ingredients

Teriyaki Sauce

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup pineapple juice

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon ginger

1 Tablespoon rice vinegar

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil (optional)

1 Tablespoon sesame seeds (optional)

1 Tablespoon cornstarch

2 Tablespoons water

Skewers

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes

1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch cubes

1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1-inch cubes

1 green bell pepper, cut into 1-inch cubes

2 cups fresh pineapple, cut into 1-inch cubes

Metal or wooden skewers (soak wooden skewers in water for 1 hour)

Directions

  1. Combine the soy sauce, brown sugar, pineapple juice, garlic, ginger, rice vinegar, salt, pepper and sesame oil and seeds, if using. Whisk well, then transfer 1/2 cup to a large Ziploc bag to use as a marinade.
  2. Pour the remaining sauce into a small saucepan and heat over medium-high heat until it begins to boil. combine the cornstarch and water in a small bowl, mixing with a fork to create a slurry, then pour into the boiling sauce, stirring and cooking for about 1 minute until thickened. Set aside to cool until ready to use.
  3. Add chicken to the bag containing the reserved marinade and let it sit in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
  4. Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Thread chicken, peppers, onion, and pineapple onto metal or soaked skewers, the grill over direct heat for 8 to 10 minutes, turning partway through to grill evenly on both sides, until chicken is cooked through and reaches 165 degrees F when tested with an instant-read thermometer.
  5. Brush with the thickened teriyaki sauce and serve with any remaining sauce for dipping.

So, there you have it: The recipe for Hawaiian Teriyaki Chicken Skewers, which according to another recipe article from houseofnasheats.com, is one part of a traditional “Hawaiian plate lunch, a cheap and filling dish that originated back in the 1880s as a midday meal for workers at Hawaii’s sugar and pineapple plantations.” In addition to the protein (the chicken skewers), a traditional Hawaiian plate is always served with a mayonnaise-based macaroni salad and two scoops of sticky rice. If you’d like the recipe for Hawaiian Macaroni Salad, please let me a comment below, and I’ll share it with you in a follow-up post! Looking forward to hearing from you! Take care.

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A “twofer” in honor of “National Peach Month”

As the title of this post suggests, I am featuring not one, but TWO recipes in honor of July being “National Peach Month”. I don’t know about you but I’ve got to have something to much on when I’m cooking, so I’m not tempted to “sample” whatever it is that I’m cooking. So… I figured that you can make the first recipe I’m about to share with you to sip on while you make the second recipe. Without further ado, here are this week’s featured recipes:

  • Peach Smoothie
  • Peach Pie
Continue reading: A “twofer” in honor of “National Peach Month”

Peach Smoothie

(Unknown source)

Ingredients

1 large ripe peach (fresh or frozen)

1 banana

1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk

1/2 cup Greek yogurt

1 Tablespoon honey ((optional)

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

  1. Place the peach, banana, almond milk, Greek yogurt, and honey in a blender.
  2. Add a dash of cinnamon for extra flavor.
  3. Blend until smooth. Adjust the sweetness as needed by adding more honey or adjusting the amount of fruit used to accommodate your preferences.
  4. Serve chilled and enjoy!

Peach Pie

(from: Betty Crocker’s Cookbook)

Fresh Peach Pie

Ingredients:

8-inch

Pastry for 8-inch Two-Crust Pie

4 cups sliced fresh peaches (about 7 medium)

1 teaspoon lemon juice

2/3 cup sugar

3 Tablespoons flour

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 Tablespoon margarine or butter

9-inch

Pastry for 9-inch Two-Crust Pie

5 cups sliced fresh peaches (about 9 medium)

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 Tablespoons margarine or butter

Directions

  1. Heat oven to 425 degrees F.
  2. Prepare pastry.
  3. Mix peaches and lemon juice.
  4. Mix sugar, flour and cinnamon; stir into peaches.
  5. Turn into pastry-lined pie plate; dot with margarine or butter.
  6. Cover with top crust that has slits cut in it; seal and flute.
  7. Cover edge with 2- to 3-inch strip of aluminum foil to prevent excessive browning; remove foil during last 15 minutes of baking.
  8. Bake until crust is brown and juice begins to bubble through slits in crust, 35 to 45 minutes.
  9. Serve with ice cream if desired.

Variations

Brown Sugar Peach Pie: Prepare 9-inch pie as directed except — substitute 3/4 cup packed brown sugar for the granulated sugar.

Canned Peach Pie: Prepare 9-inch pie as directed except — substitute 2 cans (29 ounces each) sliced peaches, drained, for the fresh peaches and decrease sugar to 1/2 cup.

Frozen Peach Pie: Prepare 9-inch pie as directed except — substitute 3 packages (12 ounces each) frozen sliced peaches, partially thawed and drained, for the fresh; decrease sugar to 1/2 cup.

Peach-Apricot Pie. Substitute 1/4 cup apricot jam or preserves and 3/4 cup packed brown sugar for the granulated sugar; stir jam into peaches and lemon juice before mixing in flour and cinnamon.

So, there you have ’em! Not one, but TWO recipes to help you celebrate “National Peach Month”! Given the variations, though, you certainly don’t have to limit yourself to July for enjoying a yummy peach pie! If you’re like me and LOVE anything with PEACHES, I’m sure you’ll be using either the canned or frozen peach pie variations to enjoy peach pie all year long! Here’s to a happy “National Peach Month” celebration and a “peachy-keen” year!