Southern Peach Crisp

Greetings from the South! Mary and I have been away from the blog for a while since we are spending the week in Hilton Head, South Carolina, where our family visits every year. Relaxing on the beach with family, biking through the trails lined with sprawling live oak trees, and of course enjoying a taste of southern flavors– what could be better!

You can't visit the south in the summer without sampling some of the juicy peaches that reach their peak ripeness in the summer months. Farmers markets, grocery stores, and local fruit vendors are overflowing with cartons of these sunset colored fruits. Each year we stop at our favorite fruit stand on the way into the island from the Savannah airport. We make sure to pick up a basket (or two!) of the juiciest peaches we can find. 

If you've been following our blog, you may know we love incorporating seasonal ingredients in our savory dishes and desserts. Of course, this means a lot of fruit pies, galettes, and crisps featuring our favorite summer fruits and berries! While we have experimented with some new fruit desserts this summer (like our delicious raspberry buckle a few posts back!) for this post we decided to make a classic peach crisp. We made sure to pack some staple ingredients (sugars, flours, etc.) in our suitcases so we had the perfect amount for our peach dessert. 

This recipe uses very simple, on-hand ingredients and couldn't be easier to whip up for a family gathering, or just because! While the juicy peaches are really the star of the show, the buttery oat crumble makes for the perfect topping– some of our dinner guests remarked how they could eat the topping by itself! 

We are really looking forward to spending the week soaking up the sun and enjoying time with family before we head back to school in a few short weeks! Stay tuned for restaurant reviews of some of our favorite island eats! 

Peach Crisp:  

(Recipe adapted from Anne Burrell Food Network)

For the filling:

• 5 large, ripe peaches, cut into chunks
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup tightly packed brown sugar
• 2 Tbsp. sugar
• pinch of salt

For the crisp topping:

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 1/4 sticks cold, unsalted butter, cut into cubes
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds (optional, I did not have on hand but would have been a nice touch!)
• 1-2 Tbsp. cold water

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Toss the peaches in a large bowl with the zest and lemon juice. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir to combine. Pour the filling into a buttered 9x13" pan.
3. Combine all of the ingredients in a food processor except the water. Pulse until combined, this will take about 30 seconds. Add water, 1 tablespoon at a time until mixture is clumpy but crumbly.
4. Sprinkle the topping over the peaches. Be sure to loosely sprinkle the topping and not pack it down. The idea is to look very crumbly.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the filling is hot and bubbly and the topping, golden brown and crispy.