A Peachy Summer Night

One of my favorite things about summer is being able to sit outside, enjoy a drink and a delicious meal from the grill. We are pretty fortunate that less than a block away there is a little fresh produce stand that I can walk to in about 3 minutes. I think they may know me by name by the time the summer is over. I forked over a well spent $6 today on 3 ears of sweet corn and 5 delicious, juicy peaches. Originally, we thought about grilling the peaches for dessert but I thought that those peaches were far too delicious to be eaten in only one fashion. I decided to make some of those lovely peaches into some delicious drinks. I started by breaking down my peaches.

Skinning Peaches:

1) Take a knife and make an X on the bottom of the peaches.
2) Get a pot of water to a rolling boil.
3) Drop Peaches in boiling water for 30-60 seconds.
4) Take peaches out of water and put in an ice bath to cool down.
5) The skin should peel right off the peaches.

Once your peaches are peeled, put them in the food processor and blend until they are finely pureed.
Take the puree and put in through a sieve to get rid of any grit or chunks.

You now have delicious base for a lot of different drinks!
Drink #1: Peach Ginger Fizz

2 ounces peach vodka
1 ounce passion fruit vodka
2 ounces peach puree
dash of sugar
3 oz ginger ale

Put in a shaker with ice and shake until cold and mixed. Pour into a glass and top off with ginger ale to taste.

Drink #2: Peach Julep- A Brendan Connolly suggestion.  

3 ounces bourbon

1 ounce simple syrup

1 spring mint

quarter fresh peach

1 ounce peach puree

dash of bitters.

Muddle simple syrup, mint and peaches together. Add bourbon and ice and shake. Top with dash of bitters and garnish with a mint sprig. 

We really enjoyed drinking outside, grilling and enjoying the amazing weather. It was an ideal summer night and I hope there are many more to come this summer!