the sweetest peach

meatless monday
notes from maggie's farm

When milking time arrives, Stella and I have a little ritual we observe. After she's patiently done her time on the milking stand, and as a treat for her good behavior, I reach overhead and pull down a low hanging branch for Stella to snack on.  She loves this. Not necessarily because the tree branch is better than every other tree branch she will have access to once down from the milking stand and out to eat freely, but simply because it's the branch she cannot get to on her own.  She reaches for the farthest group of leaves on that branch, not the ones closest to her. Her goat peers eat much the same way--stretch, stretch, stretching to nab that one blade of grass that can't be reached, passing up the full patch among which they stand. 

It took me a while, as these lessons along this path often do, to realize the 'moral of the story' that plays itself out, daily, for me.  Another lesson in patience and gratitude.  Always striving to get that which is out of our reach, we rob ourselves of the enjoyment that is right in front of us. 

Much the same way it is with seasonal eating.  There is a rhythm to life, and nature, that we miss  when we pass up the foods that are in season, and available in our region, to purchase food that is out of season and out of area. That fruit or vegetable in our own backyard doesn't seem nearly as exotic as the lychee from Asia, or the banana from Ecuador. When we do throw over our local, seasonal fare for the more rarefied, we miss the perfect opportunity for fresh, delicious food. Foods grown artificially or transported thousands of miles are robbed of full flavor. The peach is a perfect example right now. It is in season, it is available right down the road in many areas of the country, and the peach you enjoy right now, well, it's the sweetest peach.

Do you remember eating peaches in the peak of summer as a child?  Nectar dripping from your fingers, down your forearms, off your elbows? Just the aroma alone is a sweet memory that reminds us, annually, of the best fruits of summer.  Today, a very grown up way of experiencing that same sweet summer joy--sans the sticky fingers--this savory peach galette served with balsamic wilted endive and a a semi-sweet crisp white wine which we enjoy as the unrelenting heat abates at sunset. Enjoy, friends.

rustic savory peach gorgonzola galette 
served with balsamic wilted endive

for galette:
A favorite recipe for a single pie crust, or in a pinch, a ready-made pie crust; we won't tell.  
5 medium peaches, washed, pitted, sliced (but with peels remaining)
2 oz gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
1-2 T roughly chopped fresh rosemary
1 T lemon juice
2 T cornstarch
1/4 c golden brown sugar
1t finely ground black pepper
1/2 stick unsalted butter
 ------------------------------------
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Roll crust out to 1/8" thick circle.  Transfer to foil or silicone lined baking pan.  Combine next six ingredients in a bowl and toss together. Pile filling evenly in center of crust, allowing a 2-3" margin.  fold margins of dough in, pleating to ease in circle, evenly. Dot top with butter.

Bake for first ten minutes at 400 degrees, then lower temperature to 350 degrees, without removing pan, and bake an additional 30 minutes, or until filling is bubbly and crust is golden.  Remove from oven and allow to cool 20 minutes prior to slicing.

Serve your masterpiece with an easy, well-seasoned, very quick, but still sophisticated side like this...

balsamic wilted endive

1 bunch fresh curly endive, chopped

1 large sweet onion, thinly sliced, vertically

1 clove of garlic, thinly shaved (or minced, if preferred)

1T butter

salt, black pepper, and crushed red pepper (optional), to taste

2 T aged balsamic vinegar

Saute onion in butter until wilted and golden. Stir in garlic and saute for a minute, but do not brown.  Add chopped endive and toss, well. Season with salt and peppers to taste, then add balsamic vinegar and toss thoroughly.  Remove pan from heat and allow endive to wilt, uncovered, for a few minutes, or until tender.  Serve immediately.

This week, on notes from maggie's farm, everything's just peachy. Every day this week is dedicated to this summerlicious fruit. Come back tomorrow, or later today (since summer gardens beckoned early and long, so this post was a little late today, and you might already be tomorrow when you're reading) for Tips for Tuesday, and all things peach.