Loving Local Peach Crumble

I thought I’d get one more quick post in during the Loving Local Blogathon. I could go on and on about all the reasons for loving fresh, local peaches—but do I really have to?

They’re fresh, local peaches, for goodness’ sake!

Nothing is sweeter, juicier, or more beautiful. Their delicate consistency embodies the fleeting summer days. Their color reflects the August sun.

I am actually a little loath to cook them since they’re so wonderful raw, but yesterday for variety I threw together a crumble. I love crumbles; they’re easier than pies and lighter than crisps.

Make this, and you too will Love Local.

This post is part of the Loving Local Blogathon, taking place from August 22 to 28 as part of Massachusetts Farmers’ Market Week.

Hosted by this very blog with help from the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources and Mass Farmers Markets, the Blogathon celebrates the flavors of the Bay State and raises awareness of the bounty all around us.

It also raises funds for Mass Farmers Markets, a charitable nonprofit organization that helps farmers markets throughout Massachusetts. Please support this worthy cause if you can; here’s the donation link.

Loving Local Peach Crumble

A note about the spices: personally, I’m not a big fan of peaches and ginger as a combination. I think the ginger overwhelms the peaches. So if you’re like me, you may omit the ginger. I include it for all those peachy ginger fans out there in the blogosphere.

Ingredients:

5 to 6 cups peach slices
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger (optional)
3/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) sweet butter
1/2 cup brown sugar

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the fruit in a 9-inch pie pan. (Make sure you have a cookie sheet under the pan; those peaches can be juicy!)

Sprinkle on the sugar and spices. Combine the flour and salt in a bowl. Cut in the butter with knives or a pastry blender. (Your hands will do in a pinch.) Add the brown sugar and mix again until crumbly.

Sprinkle this mixture evenly over the peaches, pressing down lightly. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown and crisp. Serves 6 to 8. This crumble may be served warm or cold.

Day Seven (Saturday)

Today is the last day of the Loving Local blogathon. Thanks to everyone who has written, read, and donated to Mass Farmers Markets!

Here are the posts we are learning about on Saturday.

Teresa of Farm Share Stories pens a sonnet to her little white eggplant.

JJ of Cuisine en Locale sings the season’s praises.

Betsy at A Plateful of Happiness uses her farmers market haul for an after-work Asian-inspired pasta salad with summer vegetables.

Meghan of Travel, Wine, and Dine sums up her season of produce in words and pictures in honor of Farmers’ Market Week.

Pure Wellness Amy shows off her sense of humor and her culinary skills with a colorful green bean salad.

Sarah in the Kitchen plans a gluten-free meal around her ancho chicken chili.

I, Tinky of In Our Grandmothers’ Kitchens, go peachy kean with a summery crumble.

Catherine of Pursuing Domestic Goddess-ness transforms peaches into Loving Local candy.

Myrna of The PescoVegetarian Times samples local products and explains why every week is Farmers’ Market Week at her house.

Nikki at Art and Lemons comes home from the Falmouth Farmers Market with goodies–and a story.

Julie of How Does YOUR Garden Grow? shares a plateful of joy as she extols Holiday Brook Farm in Dalton.

Kathleen of Parlez-Moi Blog remembers a youth of roasting corn and catching frogs and shares a cucumber-salad recipe.

Kel at More Cupcakes! shares her recipe for wheat berry tabouleh (and manages to work in the word “chiffonade”).

Joe at Somerville Local First discusses the ways in which the local-food movement is influencing the local movement in general.

We have TWO posts from Urbivores.net. First, Jeremy discusses the consequences of buying blueberries in bulk. Next, Emma chronicles the summer’s explosion of tomatoes.

We belatedly discovered a post from Monday by Jeremy at Basic Eating in which he discussed his challenge for the week–to discover four edible plants within fifty feet of his front door!

In what I think is our 100th post (although I’m a little bleary eyed so I’ll have to recount later!), Michael of My World by Michael writes of his love for spaghetti with fresh tomato sauce.

Rob at Baked Orchard shares his experience at the Framingham Farmers Market.

Disposable Aardvarks returns with two great lunch recipes and a farmer’s market tour.

Abbe from Out of the Box doesn’t let a little thing like a camping trip get in the way of using and eating a LOT of peaches.

Lara of Good Cook Doris! surveys her local loot before showing off a simple, tasty main dish.

Late Additions:

This one was actually early–but we missed it! Ellen at Bottomless Kitchen announced the blogathon and put in a plea for funds for farmers markets.

Maleah at MassMoms wrote about teaching her little boy where good food comes from.

And Kathleen at Parlez-Moi Blog explains how the blogathon reunited old friends.

Day Six (Friday)

Friday looks like a busy and delicious day for the Loving Local blogathon! If you like what you read, please donate to Mass Farmers Markets…..

Bianca of Confessions of a Chocoholic roasts green and yellow beans and garnishes them with truffle butter … mmm.

Kathleen of Parlez-Moi Blog provides four separate recipes to recreate her family’s lavish traditional potato-pancake picnic.

Martin of Free Range at Madroño Ranch in Texas tells of his favorite romantic Massachusetts meal–one at which he wasn’t even present!

Christy at The Outer Aisle has TWO new posts. First, she makes a simple stir fry with Asian eggplant from her CSA. Next, she delves into her farmshare and comes up with … callaloo soup (and a little Jimmy Buffett–or should we say Buffet?).

Jeremy of Basic Eating goes back to his front door for a little wood sorrel.

Kate at Village Veggies concocts a succulent Punjab eggplant.

Kel of More Cupcakes! provides our second callalou recipe of the day. (Now, that’s a phrase you don’t hear every day!)

Jillian of (Mis)Adventures with Food gets a few surprises when she tries toasting watermelon seeds.

Catherine of Pursuing Domestic Goddess-ness makes quick pickles with her extra zucchini.

Krista of Disposable Aardvarks gets creative with kale.

Pat the Commonweeder lists ten reasons to shop at farmers markets and comes up with a new local food slogan.

Nikki at Art and Lemons lists five ways to eat more beets along with a recipe for marinated beet salad.

Day Five (Thursday)

The blogathon entries are still coming in fast and furiously. Here are today’s additions. While you’re reading, PLEASE remember to donate to Mass Farmers Markets to help keep our state’s markets strong.

I, Tinky at In Our Grandmothers Kitchens, finally get into the act with summery corn fritters and salsa fresca.

Teresa of Farm Share Stories ponders the reasons for eating local food.

Kel at More Cupcakes! opens her farmshare box and makes roasted vegetables, then discusses her reasons for participating in the blogathon.

Bargain Becky visits the North Scituate Farmers Market to find bargains–and a treat for her kids.

Maryanne of Mama Smiles takes her children to the Bedford Farmers Market, where they try new foods and get their hands stamped.

Pure Wellness Amy shifts gears to visit the Nicewicz Family Farm–and shows off the zucchini-ricotta cheesecake she recently took to a bridal shower.

Kathleen of Parlez-Moi Blog concocts a dark and delicious cherry-rhubarb-brambleberry sauce.
Amy at Madame Menu invites readers to share Baby’s First Farmers Market.

Jeremy at Basic Eating takes a bite out of a plant that is everywhere, the dandelion.

I belatedly acknowledge Katie Cohen‘s VIDEO entry, a short film called Sunday Morning at the Farmers Market. (Sorry, Katie!)

Nikki of Art and Lemons explores the glorious colors of tomatoes and makes a tantalizing soup from them.

Catherine of Pursuing Domestic Goddess-ness ponders her latest farmshare and throws beets and chicken into a curry.

Kimberlea of Lighter and Local puts her haul of veggies and a little bacon into a tempting lasagna.

Megan of Delicious Dishings mixes bright colors and bright flavors in a watermelon, feta, and heirloom tomato salad.

Audrey at Food from Books strays into comfort food by baking penne with corn, zucchini, and basil.

Laurie of Recipes and More from Inspired Cooking features clams and more clams–because she’s from Essex.

Stephanie from atomsatwork celebrates the local food movement and visits the Pittsfield Farmers Market.

I'm as Corny as Massachusetts in August...

The Augusts of my childhood in Hawley, Massachusetts, were golden, both literally and figuratively.

The landscape was filled with the bright yellow of sunflowers and the duller yellow of hay. The sun seemed to shine every day as we swam and swam and swam.

And corn was consumed every single evening—just before all the neighborhood children rushed from the dinner table to engage in a spirited game of Kick the Can.

I loved corn then. I still do. The act of eating it takes a certain amount of deliberation. With its lovely long rows of kernels, this vegetable stretches on like a perfect summer day or evening.

The freshest corn (and of course we ate and eat only the freshest) is sweet and not starchy, purchased the day of its picking at the farm on which it grew.

Most of the time I still serve corn as I my mother did when I was young. I quickly boil or grill it and add butter, salt, and pepper.
I’m a lot less lavish with the butter than I was as a child, of course; in fact, sometimes I omit it altogether.



Once in a while I feel the urge to get go beyond straight corn, particularly with leftover kernels.

My mother’s favorite use for leftover corn is in succotash. She loves to combine it with cranberry beans (those whitish beans with pink stripes that appear in farm stands and stores only at this time of year). As soon as I find some cranberry beans, I’ll post her recipe.

Meanwhile, here is one of my current favorite ways to use leftover corn kernels. It combines the corn with another iconic August food, the tomato.

However I eat it, the texture and flavor of corn always take me back to those August days and nights of my childhood when time stood still, children played and laughed, and the landscape glimmered with yellow.

This post is my own contribution to the Loving Local Blogathon, taking place from August 22 to 28 as part of Massachusetts Farmers’ Market Week.

Hosted by this very blog with help from the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources and Mass Farmers Markets, the Blogathon celebrates the flavors of the Bay State and raises awareness of the bounty all around us.

It also raises funds for Mass Farmers Markets, a charitable nonprofit organization that helps farmers markets throughout Massachusetts. Please support this worthy cause if you can; here’s the donation link.

Loving Local Corn Fritters with Salsa Fresca

for the Salsa:

Ingredients:

3 medium farm-fresh tomatoes or 5 plum tomatoes
2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and chopped
3 scallions, finely chopped (white part plus some green)
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
a handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
the juice of 1 lime
1 teaspoon salt

Instructions:

Core and chop the tomatoes. Using a slotted spoon, move them into a medium bowl. Discard the remaining juice or use it in soup.

To the bowl add the peppers, onion, garlic, and cilantro. Stir in the lime juice and salt. Allow the salsa to sit at least 1/2 hour so the flavors can meld.

for the Fritters:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly ground pepper to taste
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cumin (you may omit this for more traditional fritters, but I like the hint of spice)
1/2 cup (generous) grated sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 egg
chopped parsley and/or cilantro as desired
2 cups leftover corn kernels
peanut, canola, or even olive oil as needed for frying

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.

In a bowl thoroughly combine the flour, the baking powder, the salt, the pepper, the cumin, and the cheese.

Whisk together the milk, the oil, and the egg. Add the herbs if you are using them. Stir this liquid into the flour mixture. (A few lumps are just fine.) Stir in the corn.

Pour oil into a frying pan until it just about covers the bottom of a frying pan when you swirl it around to distribute it. Heat the oil until it is about 350 degrees. (It will shimmer!)

Pop spoonsful of batter into the hot oil.

Cook the batter quickly, turning as needed, until it is golden brown. Do not crowd the fritters in the pan! They will be idiosyncratic but lovely. Add a little more oil if you really must for frying.

When individual fritters are ready drain them on paper towels and store them in the warm oven until all the fritters have been cooked.

for Serving:

Ingredients:

fritters (see above)
salsa (see above)
sour cream or crème fraîche to taste

Instructions:

Top each fritter with a spoonful of salsa and a dollop of sour cream or crème fraîche.

Serves 4 to 6.

Day Four (Wednesday)

Here are today’s entries in the blogathon. (I hope to add my own tomorrow. Last night’s recipe testing needed a little tweaking!)

Betsy at A Plateful of Happiness recalls a rainy day at the Lexington Farmers Market. (She also highlighted the blogathon in a post on Monday, which we missed!)

Megan at Delicious Dishings touches on technology and her favorite market while preparing a salad with lemon-basil dressing.

Jeremy at Basic Eating introduces readers to a nutritious plant called Lamb’s Quarters.

Kathleen of Parlez-Moi Blog proves that home-grown (or farm-grown) dyes are the best with her gorgeous family recipe for pickled eggs with red beets and onions.

Teresa of Farm Share Stories throws together a cozy, vegetable-filled corn chowder.

Suzanne of Locavore in the City uses the summer’s tomato bounty to concoct a pasta-less lasagna.

Catherine of Pursuing Domestic Goddess-ness ponders her weekly CSA share.

Hannah of Strawberries and Tomatoes recounts her excellent night in the kitchen (hint: tomatoes are involved!).

Meggin of Happy Valley Locavore muses on the changes in the weather–and the season.

Deb of The Other Woman Cooks pays tribute to her grandmother–and her garden–with stuffed eggplant.

Frances of Plate to Plate concocts some quick cherry tomato pickles, just in time for martini hour.

Kate at Village Veggies gets creative with zucchini chocolate-chip cookies.

Kimberlea at Lighter and Local uses the ingredients she has in the house to make a peach-cardamom crisp.

Betsy of Bits by Bets inspires parents and kids with an easy way to get servings of fruit. Betsy’s previous post (which we missed) helps families turn garden zucchini into … crab cakes.

Lara of Good Cook Doris! explores farmers markets and also links to some of her colorful market-inspired recipes.

Day Three (Tuesday)

Here are today’s additions to our virtual feast:

For Monday (but we only just discovered it!), Pure Wellness Amy profiled the veggies and eggs available at Riverdale Farm & Garden and Shady Pine Farm.

For Tuesday Amy returns to sample the bread and tomatoes at Daily Bread Bakery Cafe and Shivick Farm.

Hannah from The Bitch Stopped Cooking goes a little wild with summer-squash sloppy joes.

Kel at More Cupcakes! makes Spanish tortillas from her CSA box.

Elizabeth at On Tap for Today remembers a beloved childhood book as she makes blueberry crisp.

Happy Valley Mama talks shares a few tips she has learned at the farmers market in Northampton.

Megan at Delicious Dishings chows down on everybody’s favorite summer treat, watermelon.

Kathleen at Parlez-Moi Blog dips into green tomatoes and comes up with not one but three recipes!

Molly at Wicked Cheap in Boston lists local farmers markets and suggests ways in which readers can save money while shopping.

Jillian at (Mis)Adventures with Food raves about her all-purpose hodgepodge couscous salad.

Jeremy at Basic Eating discusses the much maligned purslane–a summer edible he can find five feet from his door.

Catherine of Pursuing Domestic Goddess-ness shares the perfect summer way to cook her CSA cabbage.

Hannah at Strawberries and Tomatoes relishes her own homegrown tomato festival.