Peach Picking and Vegan Peach Cobbler

This weekend, after living in the south for over five years, we finally went peach picking! While Georgia is the state best known for its peaches, South Carolina actually grows more peaches every year! No matter what state it comes from, nothing compares to a fresh, ripe summer peach. So grab some water, sunscreen, bug spray, and where some shoes that say "I'm going peach picking!" Also pro-tip - go in the morning before it gets too hot, the bees were also not quite out yet, which is ideal if you have little ones!

We traveled just a short hop to Fishers Orchard where we found a pick-your-own peach stand. Turn down Fisher Road and stop when you see an old wooden stand. There you pick out your basket(s) and proceed to the Peach Grove where the peaches they are currently picking are. Our peaches were Flameprince peaches - which is a yellow-fruited free-stone variety of peach.

Now comes the game of picking. There are seemingly thousands of peaches just waiting to be picked. Some of the peaches were still firm, yellow-ish green, and not quite ripe yet. Then others, were beautiful, vibrant reddish orange, ever so slight give, and a nice smell - PICK THOSE! You could honestly fill up an entire basket at one tree, but were is the fun in that? We ended up weaving between trees, trying to find the *best* peach. I think we ended up with a basket load of the *best* peaches - if I do say so myself!

Now - I have to be 100% honest, and say, I cheated. These peaches could use a few days on the counter before they are perfect. But I NEEDED peach cobbler. Luckily for me, I happened to go to the Farmers Market the weekend before, and had some peaches that were in desperate need to be cooked. Too ripe to eat without making a complete fool of yourself, aka perfect for peach cobbler. Yes, if you are so eager you can make peach cobbler with underripe peaches, but honestly, a little bit of patience and you will be rewarded with the peachiest of peach flavors - well worth the wait.

Vegan Peach Cobbler

Filling

- 6 - 8 very ripe peaches, sliced

- 1/4 brown sugar

- 1 tbsp flour

Topping

- 1 cup all-purpose flour

- 1/2 cup rolled oats

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 1 tsp baking powder

- 1 tsp vanilla extract

- 3/4 cup brown sugar

- 1/2 cup earth balance vegan butter

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. While the oven is preheating, slice up your peaches and toss them with the brown sugar and flour. It should be syrupy, no dry flour. Pour into a greased square baking pan (8x8, 9x9). In a mixing bowl combine the dry ingredients for the topping. Add the vegan butter and vanilla extract and start pressing the butter into the flour with a fork, or pastry cutter. At a certain point I usually switch to using my hands, but you can do it however you like. It will seem like there is too much flour to all be complete incorporated into the butter, but keep working it, squeezing the mixture until it all is incorporated. It should come together like a cookie dough. Sprinkle the topping over the peaches, breaking it up into desirable clumps and clusters. You should get near 100% coverage, but not quite. Place in oven and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until peaches are bubbly and topping is slightly browned. Now the hardest part - WAIT. Let cool for 20 - 30 minutes. In the meantime, get in your car and go buy vegan vanilla ice cream like we did, and serve with ice cream. Goodness - you wont regret it.