Peach Blueberry Pie with Cream Cheese Filling

I'm vastly relieved to report that peach season has started at last. While peaches are one of my favorite fruits, the real reason I'm rejoicing their coming is their meaning to my palate- the heralding of fall. While it's still over a hundred here and too hot to bake much (my apologies for skipping Tuesdays with Dorie's apple bars), peaches mean that fall is coming. Soon it will cool down, I'll have my baby (35 days to go!), and I won't be so hot all day long!

A slice of this pie will also go a long way toward cooling you down. The crust only takes a few minutes to bake (and you could even buy one if you're inclined, though making and baking this takes less time than it does for me to go to the store and back with my toddler in tow). With the cool, creamy filling it's worth every minute it takes to make (a whole 20 from start to finish, yay!)

Peach Blueberry Pie with Cream Cheese Filling

For the crust:
1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs (about one sleeve)
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, meltedTo make the crust:

Butter a 9-inch springform pan (or pie plate or tart pan). Stir the crumbs and sugar together in a medium bowl. Pour over the melted butter and stir until all of the dry ingredients are uniformly moist. Turn the ingredients into the buttered springform pan and use your fingers to pat an even layer of crumbs along the bottom of the pan and about halfway up the sides. Don't worry if the sides are not perfectly even or if the crumbs reach above or below the midway mark on the sides—this doesn't have to be a precision job. Put the pan in the freezer while you preheat the oven.

Center a rack in the oven, preheat the oven to 350°F and place the springform on a baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. Set the crust aside to cool on a rack while you make the filling.

For the Filling:
1 block Reduced Fat (Neufchatel) Cream Cheese, softened
1/4 cup Sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup cold cream

Whip Cream and set aside. In the same bowl, mix the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Remove bowl from stand mixer and gently fold in the whipped cream.

For the Fruit Topping:
4 ripe peaches
2 teaspoons lemon or lime juice
1 pint blueberries
2-4 tablespoons sugar (to taste)

Peel and slice peaches. Place in large bowl with citrus juice and gently toss peaches to cover (this will prevent browning). Add blueberries in carefully then add sugar to taste (depending on ripeness of fruit). Set aside.

To assemble pie:

Spread cream cheese mixture in cooled crust. Spoon fruit on top carefully and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Ina's Peach, Blueberry, Cherry Crumble

It's Thursday again, and that means another lovely Ina recipe for the Barefoot Bloggers, chosen by the fabulous Aggie. I'm starting to feel bad, that maybe people are sick of hearing how much I love Ina, but it's for real. This isn't a teenage, summer romance. I've honestly made over 50 of her recipes and can't really recall any problems or disappointments, if you ignore the pile of dishes and excessive butter purchases. Honestly though, I don't think Ina is as bad about butter as she's made out to be- and even when she is, it's easy enough to modify the recipe to be a little better. For this crumble/crisp/almost cobbler, I'll be sure to use a bit of whole wheat flour next time, since I'm sure not even my brother would notice (and he kind of has radar for that stuff). I also lowered the amount of butter in the recipe below (actually doubling the topping but not the butter, since I baked this for a crowd in a big casserole pan) to make a less greasy crust. I threw in some chopped pecans last minute and they were perfect.

I love fruit desserts. I love Ina. I can't wait for peach season to come and when it does you can bet I'll be pining for the days when I lived in Utah and could walk one block to Allred Orchards stand and pick one of 10 gorgeous varieties. For now, the "fruit lady" hooks up all my Mesa, AZ peeps with delicious Utah fruit all summer and fall long. Email me (top right) for her info if you're looking for some exceptional peaches, starting in mid August, for Crumbles, Crisps, Cobblers, Waffles, Ice Cream, Smoothies... I don't know, just about everything. And make this Ina recipe (it's another good one, surprise!)

Peach, Cherry, and Blueberry Crumble
loosely adapted from Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa at Home

For the fruit
2 lbs firm, ripe peaches (6-8 peaches)
2 tsp grated lemon zest
2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 pint fresh blueberries
3/4 cup pitted cherries

For the Crumble
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (sub some whole wheat- I bet no one will notice)
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 lb (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, diced
2/3 cup chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Immerse the peaches in boiling water for 30 seconds to 1 minute, until their skins peel off easily. Place them immediately in cold water. Peel the peaches, slice them into thick wedges, and place them in a large bowl. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, granulated sugar, and flour. Toss well. Gently mix in the blueberries and cherries. Allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes. Spoon the mixture into large baking dish (I used my standard 9 x 13).

For the topping, combine the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until the butter is the size of peas. Dump in the pecans. Rub the mixture with your fingertips until it’s in big crumbles, then sprinkle evenly over the fruit. Place the baking dish on a sheet pan lined with a silicone mat and back for 40 to 45 minutes, until the top is browned and crisp and the juices are bubbly. Serve warm or at room temperature. If you want to make these early, store the unbaked crumble in the refrigerator and bake before dinner. Serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream (highly recommended!)

Fresh Peach Sorbet

Peaches are still abounding at my house and since they are my husband's very favorite fruit, they've been the star of the show around here lately. This peach sorbet came together quickly the other night and was a perfectly refreshing dessert- marrying the flavors of fall and the coolness of ice cream- just right for an Arizona autumn (of what, 100 degrees?)

I served it up with some snickerdoodles and the cinnamon went along just right. I'll post that recipe soon- they are my brother's favorite cookies and he'll be home in just a couple of weeks. I'm sure he'll want some after all this time. He's been serving a mission in Greece for our Church for the last two years and we'll be picking him up next week. I'm scrambling to get everything ready and hope to have my Dorie and Barefoot posts scheduled. But while we're hustling getting ready for our trip, I especially appreciate a quick and refreshing dessert... and using the ice cream maker one last time before the season is truly over. Enjoy!

Fresh Peach Sorbet
Adapted from The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz

6-8 Fresh, Ripe Peaches (about 2 pounds)
2/3 Cup Sugar
2/3 Cup Water
4 Teaspoons Fresh Lemon Juice
Pinch of Salt

Slice, peel, and pit the peaches. Combine all ingredients in a blender and pulse until smooth. Taste, then add more lemon juice of sugar if desired. Chill the mixture thoroughly, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Serve immediately or allow to harden in the freezer for a few hours. Before scooping, allow to soften a couple of minutes.

TWD- Dimply Peach Cake

Fall is not quite here but I am absolutely in love with these fall desserts. I just bought a 20 pound box of Utah peaches that have been gracing every meal around here- diced into cereal or cottage cheese, grabbed for a quick snack, sliced for lunch, and baked into something for dessert. I've even got some peach sorbet coming tomorrow. So when I saw this recipe, and smelled my fragrant, enormous box of peaches, I knew I'd have Dimply Peach Cake for Saturday's breakfast. Although I was assured that oatmeal would be sufficient and no cake was necessary, the platter was empty less than a half an hour after the cake came out of the oven.

I've included my recipe below since I made several modifications that I'd like to remember. First, I subbed whole wheat flour for 1/3 of the all-purpose flour (1/2 cup). I also included cinnamon and lemon zest to compliment the peaches, which I halved and then sliced each half into thirds. I also dished it up with a little pastry cream. Let's be honest here... what doesn't taste good with a little pastry cream?

After the first bite, I immediately thought of a reversed peach cobbler. Lots of cobbler with some sweet, soft fruit on top. The cake is moist and flavorful, soft and delicious. It easily held it's own flipping out of the pan and back onto a platter- no breaks here.

Do be careful to bake it fully or the fruit might collapse into the middle (my cake took about 2 minutes more than Dorie said, but I would check about 5 minutes before the buzzer goes off and pierce the center with a thin knife to be sure). Thanks Michelle for the great TWD choice. Next week- Creme Brulee!

Dimply Peach Cake
Adapted from Baking by Dorie Greenspan

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup (packed) light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1/3 cup flavorless oil, such as canola or safflower
Grated zest of 1 lemon or orange
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3 ripe peaches, pitted, halved, and sliced into thirds (6 slices per peach)

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan, dust the inside with flour, tap out the excess and put the pan on a baking sheet. (I actually buttered my pan this time but a nice even spray of Pam with Flour would work here)

Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon together.

Working with a mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter at medium speed until soft and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the sugar and beat for another 2 minutes, then add the eggs, one at a time, and beat for a minute after each addition. On medium speed, beat in the oil, lemon zest, and vanilla. The batter will look smooth and creamy, almost satiny (with the whole wheat flour and cinnamon it will have a nice light brown color). Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing only until they are incorporated.

Run a spatula around the bowl and under the batter, just to make sure there are no dry spots, then scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the top. Arrange the peaches in an evenly spaced pattern, lying each slice on it's side and slightly jiggling the pan just so the fruit settles comfortably into the batter.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes , or until the top is honey brown and puffed around the fruit and a thin knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Transfer the cake to a rack and cool for 15 minutes- during which time the peaches juices will seep back into the cake- then run a knife around the sides of the pan and unmold the cake. Invert and cool right side up.

Serve with whipped cream or a dollop of pastry cream for breakfast. For dessert, add a small scoop of vanilla or cinnamon ice cream.