Canning Peaches
Last week I was able to can a whole bushel of peaches for use over this winter. And although it took quite awhile to get it all done, it’s worth it in the long run to have a “healthier than storebought” option.
And while I was canning them I thought I’d do what any other sane blogger would do and take pictures along the way to show you how I did it!
First up, wash the peaches. (I didn’t take any pics of this, sorry. But I figure you’re all smart enough to get this part done without some major play by play)
*tip – make sure the peaches are ripe! and use the types that come right off the pits, other wise you’ll end up with mashed goo instead of slices of peaches.
Next, blanch them. (yea, I still didn’t have my camera out, so bear with me here) To blanch, get a pot of water at a rolling boil. Stick a few peaches in for about 30 seconds, then spoon out and place into a sinkful of ice water.
*tip – use LOTS of ice, because it melts fast when you put steaming hot peaches in it and you want to stop the cooking process quickly so as not to soften the peaches to much.
After they are blanched and have been in the ice water for a couple minutes, you can take them out and get ready to start slicing.
(aren’t they just beautiful? so tasty too!)
Now before you start slicing, it’s best to get everything else ready! Otherwise they’ll start browning while you wait. So get out your canner and get it all set up. I just use a water bath canner, so I filled it with water and put it over our power burner. I also got the lids to the jars in some boiling water on the back of the stove and set my sugar water over a burner as well. (For one batch I used 1 cup honey to 5 cups water to see how I liked the honey, but the rest was done with 2 cups organic dried cane sugar to 10 cups water)
*another tip is to start washing your jars in the dishwasher! It keeps them nice and hot while you slice!
While everything else starts to boil, now you can get to slicing!
*tip – keep the skins on until you cut them in half, makes holding on to it easier! Also, once you slice it all the way around, twist the knife a bit to separate the halves before sticking your fingers in it to pull apart. It’ll save you from some smooshed peaches!
After you have both halves off the pit, pull the skins off and slice each half into 4 pieces.
*tip – and put all the skins and pits into a separate bowl to use later for peach pit jelly!
Once you have them all sliced, fill each hot jar full of peaches and then pour the hot sugar/water mixture over top, leaving 1/2 inch of space at the top of the jar. Put one of the hot jar lids on and tighten with a lid ring. Process in the water bath canner for 30 minutes, take out and let cool.
This bushel gave me 24 quarts of peaches and right now we’re having a hard time staying away from them! I’d like to wait until the fresh fruit season is over before we dig in!
Interested in the supplements, herbs, books, or products I like? I recently set up an Amazon store so that I could easily share them with you.
All images and content are protected under US copyright laws, please do not copy and paste.
About donielle
Donielle is an amateur herbalist and natural momma to two littles (with another babe in heaven) after dealing with infertility. She has a passion for nourishing nutrition, natural living, and spreading the word on how food truly affects our health. Her blog Naturally Knocked Up focuses on fertility and reproductive health and her book on natural fertility will be available in June 2012. She also runs a local blog (Grand Rapids Natural Living) and is active the local community in order to provide the area with resources and information for natural families.
Hi! We loved your post over at KiwiLog and decided to feature it as part of our weekly mom blog round-up. Thanks!
[Reply]
Hey, your blog is looking great! I have a question about the type of peaches you used. How do you know which ones will fall off the pit and which ones won’t?
[Reply]
donielle Reply:
September 27th, 2009 at 8:51 pm
I can’t remember the exact type I bought, but you just have to make sure they’re “freestone” peaches and not cling peaches. I’m pretty sure all the cling peaches are done though as they’re a late July and August peach.
And thank you!
[Reply]
Yay, I canned peaches for the first time this year. And here we are in December and we have them in our pantry to eat when we want fruit or to trade for other goods. Last week my husband took a few to work to trade with his co-worker/hunter friend who bagged a deer recently and had venison steaks prepped.
[Reply]
donielle Reply:
January 4th, 2010 at 12:30 pm
@kia, Nice! We’ve been enjoying our peaches as well. Though I wish I had frozen some to keep them ‘raw’ and for using in smoothies. I think next year I’ll do at least 1/4 bushel frozen! Hmm….I kinda wonder how they’d be thawed out.
[Reply]
Vallimasoos Reply:
July 28th, 2011 at 12:21 am
@donielle,
I bought 40 lbs. Of peaches. I did freeze some to grill later in the year. The sugar in the peach caramelizes. Add some ice-cream or eat as is…they are Fabulous!
[Reply]
joy Reply:
April 3rd, 2012 at 4:28 pm
@donielle, I have a peach tree and freeze them too. They will have a little water in them…but if you plan on a smoothie or peach cobler, peach crisp they will be great. Enjoy.
[Reply]
So how did you like the honey syrup ones?
[Reply]
donielle Reply:
September 13th, 2010 at 3:19 pm
@Renee, They definitely were not as sweet – but since honey can be pricey, I was rather stingy with it. The color also changed after a few months on the shelf (slightly browned) where the ones with sugar were still bright orange. I was hoping to try sucanat this year, but peaches didn’t last long enough for me.
I guess there’s always next year!
[Reply]