A great way to use up the end of summer fruits….

2012 © COPYRIGHT KAJAL DHABALIA, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Peaches are one of my favorite fruits….last week I went on little overboard buying our fruit for the week…so my peaches had gotten a little overripe :). I hate throwing food away….so whenever my pitted fruits or berries begin to show signs of being overripe, I usually just make a small batch jam out of it.

I wash, cut and throw them in a saucepan with a pinch of cinnamon and vanilla–if the fruits on the sour side, I might throw in a teaspoon or two of sugar as well depending on the sweetness of the fruit. Then I let it simmer for about 20-25 minutes on low or until it gets to consistency I like.

I usually do this while making dinner, so that it’s just cooking off the side while I’m in the kitchen…and then voila, by the time I’m done cooking…my jam, pie filling, sundae topping :)….or whatever you want to call it is also done….this week I cooked down peaches as a great base for a smoothie. 

 Spiced Peach Smoothie (2, 12 oz servings)

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup cinnamon spiced peach jam (see below for recipe)
• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1 cup filtered water (depends on how thick you like it)
• half of an avocado
• 1 banana
• 2 tablespoons hempseed

DIRECTIONS for cooking

1. Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.
2. Drink within a few hours due to the freshness of the ingredients used.

Cinnamon Spiced Peach Jam*

INGREDIENTS

• 2 ripe peaches, washed and cute into 1 inch pieces.
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• optional: 1-2 tablespoons of brown sugar depending on sourness of fruit–lots of overripe fruit is very sweet, so when the fruit’s really in season, most likely you won’t need the added sugar)

DIRECTIONS for cooking

1. Place all ingredients in small saucepan
2. Simmer on low heat for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally until desired consistency is reached.
3. Use within 3-4 days….on toast, in smoothies, as a quick turnover filling, or on top of an ice cream sundae :)….