Peaches

Fall is on its way and I'm getting depressed. This summer has been fantastic—Sebastian and I have been having a great time exploring the parks in our neighborhood. We have spent hours sliding and swinging and playing in the water fountain. We've snacked on excellent local fruit all summer long—when he's finally ready to sit down.

It's been beautiful to watch Sebastian discover cherries, sweet juicy berries, melons of all colors, shapes and sizes, grapes, nectarines, plums, and peaches. I don't know if the fruit was better this year or if it just seemed better because I was sharing it with him—whatever the reason, it has been amazing. (Hence my glumness.) I've shopped at the market more this year that I have any other and I realize how dreary it's going to be when the local pickings are slim. It makes me wonder if maybe we should move to California...they've got summer all year-round.

Luckily, I don't have to despair just yet; the market still has plenty of great summer fruit. The peaches are in full swing right now and will be for another few weeks, and I plan on making the most of it. Aside from making great snacks, peaches are excellent for dessert with vanilla yogurt, or grilled and served as a side dish for a meal. Peaches can be tossed into salads or even pickled. They are surprisingly good in oatmeal; simply add diced peaches during the last few minutes of cooking to allow them to soften a bit. Peach pancakes are always a hit; using your favorite whole grain pancake batter, cook the pancakes on one side and just before turning them over, press a few thin slices of fresh peach into each cake. Or stew some peaches with a bit of sugar, water and vanilla extract and serve over waffles.

However you eat them, enjoy some peaches before the last few weeks of summer get away from you (unless you happen to live in California).