It’s been a busy and rough week or so. Shortly after finishing using up all those blueberries, I broke a tooth. Well, not really. Kind of. A filling in my wisdom tooth fell out, taking some tooth with it, leaving me with not much to speak of. After seeing my dentist, we agreed that it needed to come out. Unfortunately, that meant immediately, meaning before the third trimester when such work isn’t recommended at all. And with just local anesthetic since, duh- I’m pregnant. As if that wasn’t bad enough, the oral surgeon gave me an appointment for the next week. Why is that bad?

Well it isn’t. Except for the fact that Jay’s amazing grandma Bette, a 90-something year old Holocaust survivor, suddenly took a turn for the worst and passed away the day before I was scheduled to have the surgery. So I had to reschedule it in order to attend her funeral.

I told you- it was a shitty week.

Now my tooth is out, thankfully. I’m in pain, I’m swollen, and I’m kind of scared to see the bruising that might happen.. but I’m back to being able to write up finish up some posts about the second shipment of stone fruit I received. PEACHES!

This year they- meaning Washington State Stone Fruit–  sent me a few donut peaches too, which was exciting. I had never used those before. They’re so cute. Every year I say the peaches are the most beautiful I’ve ever seen, and every year I’m not lying. I threw a few of those into the salsa I made (more on that in a second) because they don’t have a lot of juice and they’re a bit more firm.

In the past, with my second shipment of stone fruit, I’ve made vanilla brandied peach jam, nectarine basil preserves, peach + pepper salsa, vanilla bean sliced peaches in syrup, a beautiful (and easy!) peach, bourbon & black walnut crostata, mint julep peaches. I also made grilled peaches with ricotta cream & honey, which were also amazing and a great use for those peaches not suitable for canning (too many soft spots, overripe, not ripe enough, etc) as well as a  triple stone fruit crisp, spiced nectarine jam, nectarine & blackberry jam with purple ruffles basil. This year, I actually repeated the peach + pepper salsa but I didn’t feel I needed to retake the photos and repost. But let me tell you- it’s a favorite of my mom’s and if I don’t make it she cries all year.

You’ll notice in this recipe I mention using an immersion blender. I don’t have a regular blender at the moment, and my immersion blender is my BFF. It’s so much easier than transferring hot jams, jellies and salsas from pots to a blender and back again. If you don’t have one, I recommend it.

PEACH KETCHUP

Ingredients:

• 5 lbs. fresh peaches, peeled and chopped
• 3 cups light brown sugar
• 2 cups apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons mustard powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon grated nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt

Directions:

1. Sterilize and prepare your canning jars. Set aside, keeping them warm.
2. In a large pot, bring peaches, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, and all spices and seasoning to a simmer over high heat. Reduce heat to medium, and simmer about until peaches are very soft; about 15-20 minutes, depending on how ripe they are to begin with (mine were very ripe).
3. Using an immersion blender, blend until smooth. Simmer and let the peach ketchup reduce for hour. At that point, the ketchup should be thickened and ready to go.
4. Ladle it into warm canning jars. Wipe rims and seal with clean lids and bands. Process for 15 minutes in a water bath, then remove to a clean tea towel. Let cool for roughly 12 hours. Any unsealed or open jars should be stored in the refrigerator and used immediately.

This is a unique flavor that will NOT be for everyone. If you’re adventurous and you enjoy peaches and trying new things, then you’ll love it. If you’re a traditionalist you will most likely not. However, let me say that if you’re into plain ol’ tomato ketchup, and yet you wanna try and expand your world a little… try this tomato jam in place of ketchup. You’ll love it.

I promise.

And maybe it’ll ease you into a peach ketchup. Maybe next year?

If you’re in the mood for canning, or if you, too, have been canning up a storm so far this summer (or you plan to be) add the Sweet Preservation “Of Course I Canned!” badge to your blog. Click here to view & save the file, then add it. Also be sure to visit SweetPreservation.com for recipes, jar labels, FAQ’s and more.

Suggestions for use: Serve with hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, turkey burgers or veggie burgers just like regular ketchup. Also excellent with any grilled or roasted meat.

Soundtrack: The Rolling Stones – “Brown Sugar”

Sources & credits: Ball® 8-ounce jam jars; freshpreserving.com, jar labels; Ikea.