Hello everybody!! It’s been so long since I’ve been able to talk with you. I’ve missed you!! This past summer has been crazy for our family, and it just hasn’t been possible to fit enough hours into our days to do all we’d like. I’m hoping you are happy, heathy, and doing the things that you love. This is not always easy because of our various lives and the challenges they bring, but we’ll do our best, won’t we? Among other things, last week my husband Dick, brother Gary, and I tackled our annual peach canning adventure. This involved nearly five hours in the car, fetching and bringing home the coveted Zee Lady peaches. Then the frantic search for jar lids, which I now know are in very short supply everywhere. It took ten trips to various stores before we found enough. Suffice it to say, that resulted in sweating bullets. When all was said and done, we had 73 quarts of these beauties, and it was definitely worth all the bullet sweating that went on. Because we have been surrounded by peaches, I wanted to share one of my favorite ways to savor them. This Peach and Nectarine Crisp in one of my favorites – but truth be told, if you just double the peaches and leave the nectarines out altogether, you’ll still be a very happy camper. I posted this recipe for the first time a couple of years ago, before my mom Neeners had her stroke. She still is as hilarious as ever, and when I reread this post, it reminded me how much her true spirit still shines through, even through life’s hardships. It’s a good reminder and inspiration to me every day. Hope you enjoy!!
Have you ever heard the term ‘Necessity is the mother of invention’? Well, my mother, Neeners, very cleverly created a situation where it was necessary to invent something to take care of the flat of peaches she could not resist buying. “My God, those things were beautiful…so I had to buy the whole flat and now I want you to take some – NOT ALL – and do something creative”. So…there I was with a few big, and yes beautiful peaches, but not enough for her favorite peach crisp. What to do? So being the non-genius that I am, I looked around the kitchen. There, staring me right in the face, was a bowl of nectarines that I just had to have. (I guess the nut doesn’t fall too far from the tree). The result is this Peach & Nectarine Crisp. Sweet, but not too sweet, with just a hint of tartness from the nectarines, plus just the faintest whisper of cinnamon.
The perfect crisp is in the eye of the beholder. Some absolutely must have oatmeal in their crisps, while others insist on nuts. I prefer neither, but go after that rich, buttery and slightly crispy crust with fruit juices oozing through around the edges. Nirvana. If you prefer oats in your version, go ahead and replace half of the flour with them. All of you nut fans out there – add a cup chopped nuts to the topping mixture. What the heck? Do both if you like. After all, this is now your recipe….
I ended up splitting the recipe, so Neeners could have half and we could have the rest. I awaited her call…” Hello, this is your mother speaking. I am looking at a big bowl of your Crisp, but I am not eating it yet. I put a generous scoop of ice cream on top and am waiting until it melts to perfection on the top before I dive in. I will give you my review tomorrow. Goodbye”. I await her review, but in the meantime, keep reading to check out the recipe for yourself…
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