Georgia Grown

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It’s summer in the Peach State and that means fresh, sweet, juicy Georgia peaches.

Peach season always reminds me of my Dad. After he retired from the Air Force in the 1970’s, he and my Mom moved to a farm in middle Georgia. In addition to their summer garden they had a small peach and apple orchard. When the peaches were ripe Dad would call and we would drive the 200 miles to their house to pick some peaches. I can still remember the sweetness of the peach and the sticky juice running down my hands as I stood in the orchard eating a peach that moments before still been had on the tree.

These days I have to be content with buying peaches at a local produce stand. On a recent road trip we stopped at James and the Giant Peach Stand in Ellabell for some fresh Georgia peaches. As soon as we arrived at home I tasted one and them and then made a fresh peach cobbler for dessert. Another night I blended up some Peach Daiquiris.

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Georgia Peaches from Ellabell, Georgia
Peach Cobbler made with fresh Georgia peaches
Peach Daiquiri with fresh Georgia peaches

Another Georgia summer treat is the Vidalia Onion. The Vidalia Onion was named the Official State Vegetable of Georgia in 1990. They cannot be sold until the Georgia Ag Commissioner chooses a Pack date, usually in April. The season continues through August of each year. These sweet onions are only grown in a few South Georgia counties.  Tomato and Vidalia onion pie is one of my favorite summer side dishes.

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Vidalia Onions

 

It’s difficult to think anything but pleasant thoughts while eating a homegrown tomato – Lewis Grizard

The best tomatoes in the world are home grown tomatoes. If you grow your own, you know what I’m talking about. I’ve never been successful growing slicing tomatoes so I buy “Davis Killer Tomatoes” from my favorite produce stand, Davis Produce in Savannah. On a sweltering summer day there is nothing better for lunch than a tomato sandwich. Sliced bread (traditionally white bread but these days I use multi-grain or wheat), mayonnaise (preferably Dukes), and sliced tomatoes with salt and pepper. That’s it! Deliciousness!

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Tomato Sandwich

A favorite southern summer snack is boiled peanuts.  I love sitting around the table with friends and family, a cold drink and a bowl of boiled Georgia peanuts.

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Boiled Peanuts

Georgia is known for other produce the rest of the year. Did you know that the state of Georgia is one of the top blueberry producing states in the country? I look forward every spring to blueberry season. As soon as they were ready this year I bought a flat from a friend’s sister who owns an organic blueberry farm.

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Georgia grown blueberries

Are you hungry yet for some Georgia goodness? I’ve never shared a recipe on my blog before but here is my favorite cobbler recipe.

Easy Fruit Cobbler

  • 1 stick unsalted butter (use real butter)
  • 1 cup self rising flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup milk
  • 3 – 5 peeled and sliced peaches or 1 container blueberries + 1 TB sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Place the fruit in a bowl and mix with the 1 TB sugar. Set aside.

Put the butter in a 9×9 inch square baking pan (I use metal but a glass pan will work). Place the pan in the oven to melt butter.

While butter is melting, in another bowl mix the flour, sugar, and milk. Batter will be thin and milky.

When butter is melted, remove from oven and pour in the batter. Spoon fruit over batter. Bake at 350 for 50 minutes to 1 hour. Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream if desired.

Many thanks to Ingrid’s Wandering Wednesday photo prompt – food for the inspiration for this post. I take lousy food photos and have been wanting an excuse to practice.

16 thoughts on “Georgia Grown”

  1. Nice photos. I especially like your images of the peaches, and the peach cobbler and daiquiri YUM! Thanks for joining in and sharing. Keep working on the food photography as will I 😃

    Liked by 1 person

  3. What a lovely state you live in. I especially love the peaches and blueberries. However, I truly love the boiled peanuts. Having been born and raised in the south, I can appreciate
    the image of sitting around a table with family and friends eating boiled peanuts! Thanks for sharing and bringing up some lovely images.

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  4. Love Georgia Peaches and Vidalia onions! Another item I love finding is Georgia cantelop. I have yet to find a cantelop with such great flavor. Yum! You can keep your boiled peanuts, though:)

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  5. I’m going to have to start at the begging because you had me at fresh peaches. Thank you for the recipe. I’m going to try it. I don’t think I’ve ever eaten a Vidalia onion, but I ate my first tomato sandwich over the weekend. Sad thing was that I also had to buy my tomato. 😦 During the winter in SC, we see the summer signs for boiled peanuts. I can’t even imagine what they taste like. Are they chewy? And, I do my very best all year round to keep all blueberry producers in business because I always have blueberries in the refrigerator. 🙂

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  6. We haven’t hit berry season yet here in Alaska, but I’m looking forward to it. But, you post makes me long for more fresh produce! It’s pretty pricey up here ($9.99 for a small watermelon) and the nearest farmers markets is over an hour away! The cobbler looks amazing and I’d love to try the daiquiri! But, I’m with PlacesTheyGo, you can keep the boiled peanuts. I like mine roasted in the shells.

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  7. Great post of my favorite summer produce… with recipes too!!

    I ate boiled peanuts not to long ago when we were in the south. Delish!

    Our tomatoes are not quite ready! But when they are… I’ll be making tomato sandwiches! Yum!

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  9. This post really takes me home. Fresh peaches, tomato sandwiches, and boiled peanuts. It doesn’t get better than that. Your pictures look nice, especially the basket of peaches and the sandwich. Shadows and light are tricky with food.

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