From April to autumn, I have butterflies in my stomach because of peaches. There is something deep in my being that connects the health of the peach trees and the harvest to our community. This year, as with most years, the fear of a devastating freeze makes the peach butterflies in my stomach flutter furiously. Every April, I ask my friend Heather about the peach trees. Her partner grows peaches for a living, and every year, I buy several boxes of peaches to eat and put up.

My stomach butterflies flutter in May and June, because, depending on last year’s crop and how well I planned, I’m trying to make the last quarts of peaches and jars of jam I canned last until the earliest peaches are ready. In July and August, they flutter in anticipation for all of the fresh peaches I eat in copious amounts as they come in. In early autumn, they flutter, because school has started, and then, it’s the end of the season, and the canning weekends fly away.

I don’t know if other people in the valley have quite the same emotional range towards peaches, but I have always believed that places and the types of food grown there have the power to bring diverse people together in a deep communal way. The money I spend on peaches grown here strongly ties my nutritional well-being to a person’s livelihood that is part of my community that I interact with every day. The jam I make in the fall from those peaches goes to other people in my community at Christmas. I teach the children of some of the people who grow peaches in our community.

Every time I open my weekly jar of peaches, I am so thankful for the peaches my friends have grown and the work that my students’ parents give for our peach harvest in the valley. When I eat peaches, they are that much sweeter because of the community that goes into growing that peach.

FILLING

16 oz mascarpone cheese

8 oz crème fraîche

¾ cup powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

½ tsp ginger

½ tsp mace

Pinch cardamom

2 cups heavy cream

FRUIT LAYER

6 peaches, sliced1 cup peach jam

¼ tsp ginger

¼ tsp mace

Pinch cardamom

6-7 cups of 1-inch cubes (equivalent of 3 9-inchrounds) of white or yellow sponge cake or preferred variety; store bought is fine. I used two angel food cakes from the grocery store.

Blueberries, for garnish

1. Combine the ingredients for the fruit layer in a bowl, and let sit for about an hour before assembly.

2. Whip the cream into stiff peaks. Set aside.

3. In a separate bowl, beat together mascarpone cheese, crème fraîche, spices and powdered sugar until smooth and well incorporated.

4. Gently fold whipped cream, about a quarter at a time, into the mascarpone cheese mixture. Be careful not to deflate the cream too much, so it doesn’t become too runny.

5. Start layering in a trifle dish or large flat-bottomed bowl with ¼ of the cream mixture. Then layer half the cake, half of the fruit mixture and half of the remaining cream mixture. Repeat, ending with cream mixture on the top. Garnish with blueberries, if desired.

***PEACH + BLUEBERRYWHITE WINE SPRITZER***

One bottle of dry white wine, such as pinot grigio

One ripe peach, peeled, diced into small cubes

½ cup blueberries, halved

Plain seltzer

1. Muddle the peaches and blueberries a little and put in a jar or pitcher with a lid. Add wine. Seal with an airtight lid, and refrigerate for at least four hours.

2. If desired, pour through a mesh strainer to remove the pulp.

3. Serve with a little soda water and blueberries to garnish.

Photos by Cat Mayer.

Originally published in the Summer 2023 issue of Spoke+Blossom.

Summer Recipes: Butterflies + Peaches

FILLING

FRUIT LAYER