August is National Peach Month. The apple orchard near my home is filled to the brim this time of year as it offers peach picking in August. It is a wonderful month to pick and eat fresh peaches. I must confess that I do not like cooked peaches. I simply like them in their truest form: raw. However, my family enjoys peaches in almost any way you can think of from pies to fruit salad.
Did you know Alexander the Great brought peaches from China back to Greece? When he brought peaches back he brought a little treasure full of niacin, thiamine, potassium and calcium, beta carotene, (an antioxidant that converts to Vitamin A), which is essential for healthy hearts and eyes. Did you know that the darker the peach the more Vitamin A it has in the pulp? So make sure you are picking the dark ones if you go peach picking this year. Peaches do lose much of their nutritional value once cooked so try to eat raw as much as possible or lightly cook your peaches.
Here is recipe from a family member who is a peach fanatic. It is also low in fat!
Peach Crumble Dessert
Ingredients
8 ripe peaches, peeled, pitted and sliced
Juice from 1 lemon
1/3 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup whole-wheat (whole-meal) flour
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons trans-free margarine, cut into thin slices
1/4 cup quick cooking oats
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 F. Lightly coat a 9-inch pie pan with cooking spray.
Arrange peach slices in the prepared pie plate. Sprinkle with lemon juice, cinnamon and nutmeg.
In a small bowl, whisk together flour and brown sugar. With your fingers, crumble the margarine into the flour-sugar mixture. Add the oats and stir to mix evenly. Sprinkle the flour mixture on top of the peaches.
Bake until peaches are soft and the topping is browned, about 30 minutes. Cut into 8 even slices and serve warm.