MMM, mmm, Peaches

We’ve been getting peaches from our CSA. Cute W and I are temperamentally incapable of having peaches in the house without singing that peaches song “. . . peaches come in a can, they were made by a man. . . .” Of course, then the girls protest, outraged, “Peaches don’t come in a can! They’re from trees! What are they talking about!?!” At some point we offered them some canned peaches just to end the argument. They both thought the canned peaches were weird and gross, which made us feel pleased with ourselves as nutritionally successful parents.

Mary pressed even more peaches on us, so we used them to make  a recipe that Cute W’s always called Good Pie Stuff. This recipe is from Cute W’s family. Mary said it reminded her of what she called “the national recipe of New Zealand,” pavlova. But those recipes don’t have what we consider the key ingredient (besides the fruit): saltines. The result is salty-sweet yummy goodness.

Ingredients for the bottom of the pie:

• 3 egg whites
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ½ cup chopped walnuts
• 15 saltine crackers, crushed

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Set the eggs out and allow them to come to room temperature before you begin.
• Beat egg whites until they are stiff. Mix in baking powder and sugar. Fold in vanilla, nuts, and crushed crackers.
• Bake for 10 to 15 minutes.
• Remove and allow to cool completely before adding the topping.

Topping:

• 1 cup whipping cream
• powdered sugar to taste
• 1 or 2 cups fruit of choice: we usually use peaches, berries, or mangoes

Directions:

• Whip the cream and add a little bit of powdered sugar if you’d like it extra sweet.
• Slice fruits into bite-size pieces. This pie is really not worth making unless the fruit is very good, so make sure there’s some yummy fruit available.

For the record, Cute W says that this is too much whipped cream. Personally, I don’t believe in the phrase “too much whipped cream.”