…..Aaron's EnvironMental Corner…..

DIY – Bottling Peaches as Preserves or Halves

Filed Under: Do It Yourself on September 6, 2009

Canning (bottling) peaches is a good example of how to can soft fruits like peaches, apricots, nectarines, pears, plums and so forth.  These soft and very sweet fruits are extremely easy to can–more so than apples and other harder, less acidic fruits.

We canned both peach preserves and peach halves.  The same recipes I’m showing here work well with pears, purple or red plums, and nectarines as well.  Apricots will also do well this way, though a little more sugar and pectin is usually required.

Jarring Halves
We’ll start with the halves, which are easier.  This same recipe works for quarters, slices, etc. as well, halves are just easier to process and put in the jar.  Note that some people skin their fruit (see below to find out how) for this, but I prefer to leave the skin on and just clean, pit, and jar them.

First, clean the fruit well.  If they’ve been subjected to pesticides, I recommend using vingar and water in a 10% solution (1:10 vinegar-water) and a light, soft-bristled scrub or fruit brush to clean them well.  If you’re using organic peaches, they still need to be cleaned, but you can probably just use water to do so.

Pick out the best of the peaches: no blemishes, bruising, etc.  These can lead to problems later on, so I prefer to use the good ones and eat the questionable ones right away and raw.  To check quality, of course.

Remove any stem then slice in half, twist to separate, and then pull the pit out.  Drop the halves into the jar inside down.  This is not only so they’ll stack more compactly but also makes them easier to get out with a fork later.  Fill the jar, making sure to leave at least 1/4-inch at the top in head room.

Ad sugar (if any), pectin (if any), and water.  My recipe calls for neither and just uses lemon juice to preserve color and consistency.  Make sure the water covers the peaches entirely, put on the lid and ring, and boil for 15-20 minutes.  Remove jars from heat and let cool on counter top or shelf until sealed.

Here’s the recipe (per quart jar):

• Peaches (about 2-3 per quart jar), cleaned, halved and pitted.
• Juice from one lemon (or 1-1/2 tablespoons if using concentrate).
• Water to fill jar, leaving 1/4″ head space.
• 15-20 minutes in canning bath.

Easy!

Peach Cobbler Preserves
I call these Peach Cobbler Preserves because that’s what they smell like while you’re making it.  So be sure you’ve eaten before you do this or you won’t have any preserves to can when you’re done making them.  This recipe works well with plums, pears, and apricots also.

Clean the peaches well, as above, but don’t be picky about which ones you use.  Bruises, blemishes, etc. are okay here.  Then skin the peaches by blanching them.

Boil some water in a pan and put some cool water in a bowl nearby.  Drop peaches into the boiling water for about a minute, remove and put in cold water immediately.  Let cool for about thirty seconds to a minute, then remove and pull off the peel.  It will “skin” easily using only pressure from your fingers to pull it loose.  Halve the peaches and remove the pits.  Drop into a large container that can be put on the stove later and that has a lid.

You will need about four pounds of peaches for every quart you wish to make.  Adjust up or down as needed, but know that more is better than not enough.

Once you have your peaches skinned, pitted, and ready to go, ad sugar.  I prefer ground sugar cane, unprocessed, which is commonly sold as “Sumeric.”  It looks and smells a lot like brown sugar, though it’s not ground as fine.  You can find this in health food stores, many grocery stores, etc.  It’s usually labeled organic.  Put about a pound of sugar per four pounds of peaches in.  Ad a cup of lemon juice (per four pounds of peaches).  Then ad a cup of unprocessed honey.

Mix well with a wooden or plastic spoon or spatula while adding four cups of water (per four pounds; I usually use the water used to boil the skins off).  Put the lid on and let sit at room temperature for at least an hour.

Put the container with the fruit in on the stove at medium-high heat, remove the lid, and mash the contents with a spoon, large fork, potato masher, or whatever will work best.  Bring to a boil and stir constantly.  Let boil for about ten to fifteen minutes (still stirring!) and then remove from heat.

Strain quickly to remove most of the excess moisture (this is awesome peach juice!) then immediately ladel thick peach mash into heated jars with pectin in the bottom (one measure per jar).

Once the jars are full, ad pectin and put on the lids.  Boil in canner for about 15 to 20 minutes, remove from heat and let stand to seal.  If you have enough of the juice that you’d like to can that, put it into a jar without pectin, leaving about 3/8″ of head space, put on a lid and boil in the canner for fifteen minutes.

Here’s the recipe for reference (per quart):

• About four pounds of peaches, skinned, pitted and halved.
• 1 cup of lemon juice or equivalent concentrate.
• 1 cup of unprocessed honey.
• 1 pound of sugar, brown sugar, or sumeric.
• 1 measure of pectin.

The skins are good to eat, can be added to peach pies, or they make great garden compost.  If using them this way, I usually just throw them right into the garden rows as they rot and break down pretty quickly.  They can also be dried into a tasty fruit leather.

Have fun and enjoy!

Related posts:

1. DIY – Jams and Jellies Without Canning
2. DIY – How To Can (Jar) Fruits and Vegetables: the Basics
3. DIY – Pickling Cucumbers (pickles) With Aaron’s Tuscany Pickle Recipe