Canning Peaches

On Sunday I was in town running errands and stopped by the local farm market. The day before I had bought some amazingly juicy peaches at Safeway and I wanted to see the prices for local peaches. The local peaches were about $.50 cheaper per pound, and I know exactly where they were picked! Note to self to check farm market first. I was browsing around and found a 1/2 bushel of 2nd grade peaches. A full bushel typically weighs close to 50 pounds. I got over 20 pounds of peaches for...wait for it... $12! Made my little frugal heart skip a beat. Now 2nd grade peaches taste just the same as regular ones. It just means they have some bruises or cuts. Nothing that I can't cut out. Maybe these aren't the best if you want to eat them whole. But they work splendidly for canning and pies!

As soon as I got home I started peeling them. Since they are already 2nd grade I knew I had to do something with them right away before they spoiled. When I had enough peeled, I made two peach pies. One for dessert that night, and one was destined for the freezer. I looked back at my box and it seemed like I had barely touched the pile of peaches. The rest I peeled, sliced and then canned to save for later.

One of my main issues with canning is that as soon as I am done I want to try it, which totally defeats the purpose of canning. Luckily for me, one of the jars looks like it didn't seal correctly. Since I don't want to take any chances, I guess I will eat it now. Oh darn! Twelve dollars turned into two pies, 8 quarts and 1 pint of peaches. Pretty frugal, fun and farm friendly if you ask me!