Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Peachy Keen

Peaches can either be really good or really disappointing. When they are bad they are mealy, woody, tasteless. But when they are good, oh man, they are gooood! I find myself eating them over the sink or over a napkin to catch all the juices...sigh.
This summer has been a positive peach experience for me. Whether I buy them at the grocery or the farmer's market, I have been in peach heaven.

This is a peach pie recipe I got from an old Cooking Light magazine and have made many times over the years. It's really easy and fool proof. The recipe calls for refrigerated pie dough, but if you are a purist, please feel free to substitute your own favorite dough recipe. I have done both depending on how much time I have wanted to spend - and really, it's all about the peaches, so get yourself some good ones.

Brown Sugar - Peach Pie With Coconut Streusel

1/2 (15 oz.) package refrigerated pie dough (such as Pillsbury)
2/3 cup packed brown sugar, divided
3 Tbls. all-purpose flour - ( if your peaches are very ripe and juicy, you might want use an additional 1-2 Tbls. flour to thicken the filling)
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
8 cups peeled, sliced, ripe peaches (about 3 1/2 lbs. or 12 peaches)
1/3 cup regular oats
1/4 cup flaked sweetened coconut
1 1/2 Tbls. butter, melted

Preheat oven to 425*

Fit dough into a 9-inch pie plate. Fold edges under, flute. Line dough with a piece of foil, and arrange pie weights or dried beans on foil. Bake at 425* foe 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350*. Remove pie weights and foil. Bake at 350* for 5 minutes. Cool crust on a wire rack.

Combine 1/3 cup brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon in a bowl with the sliced peaches - gently toss and arrange into prepared crust. Bake at 350* for 30 minutes. Combine 1/3 cup brown sugar, oats, coconut, and butter and sprinkle over peach mixture. Shield edges of crust with foil. Bake an additional 30 minutes or until golden. Cool on a wire rack.

Serve with vanilla ice cream or not. I love it just the way it is - no embellishments necessary. I hope you try this and if you do, please leave a comment and let me know what you think.



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