We’ve all heard of wine and food pairings. Of tea and food pairings. Of fruit and cheese pairings.
Truth be told, I don’t think I’m very good at any of them.
I take that back. I’m decent at tea and food pairing, if only because I drink so. much. tea. and read so much about it. But let’s face it, I usually stick with chai.
Apparently, I can pair honey and food. Yes, honey.
I know what you’re thinking. ”But Julie, isn’t honey just honey?”
At the grocery store, maybe. At the Farmer’s Market? No. At least not at our Farmer’s Market, where Waid’s Honey offered at least 6 kinds last weekend.
Yup, honey from different flowers tastes significantly different. Who knew there was so much variety?
I tasted four flavors on Saturday: Sweet Clover, Wildflower, Buckwheat and Basswood, and immediately knew that Basswood was the honey to use for these canned peaches. Somehow, they had this faint undertone of peach flavors, and I just knew that they would pair perfectly.
If you don’t have access to Basswood honey, any honey will work. But it is worth a little extra look, because the Basswood takes them from “great” to “WOW.”
For information on how to can safely and more canning recipes, please visit my Food Preservations page.
Ingredients
- 4 pounds peaches
- 2 cups honey
- 1 cups granulated sugar
- 2 cups water
Instructions
- Prepare for canning. Wash the jars and flat lids with hot, soapy water. Put the jars in the canning pot and fill the pot with hot water. Heat over medium-high heat to keep the jars hot. Place the lids in a heat-proof bowl.
- Wash and pit the peaches. Cut into thin slices, approximately 1/2" thick.
- Combine the honey, sugar and water in a medium saucepan over low heat. Heat until the sugar is dissolved, stirring regularly.
- Move some of the boiling water from the canning pot into the heat-proof bowl containing the lids. Line the hot jars up on a folded towel, then pour the water out of the heat-proof bowl and off the lids.
- Pack the peach slices into the jars up to 1/2" below the rim. Carefully pour the honey syrup over the peaches so that it comes to 1/4” below the rim. Use a chopstick around the inside edges of the jar to get out the air bubbles (don't use metal, you may scratch the jars and cause them to crack during processing!).
- Use a clean towel to wipe any syrup off the rims, then top each jar with a lid and a tightened ring. Place the jars back in the canning pot and make sure they are covered by at least 1 inch of water. Bring to a boil and process for 25 minutes. Place the jars on a folded towel and allow to sit, undisturbed, for 24 hours. Check the seals of the lids after 1 hour. If a seal has not formed, refrigerate the jar immediately.
For information on how to can safely and more canning recipes, please visit my Food Preservations page.
Great post! I know at my farmers market “honey” is not just honey! I love Wildflower honey and need to try Buckwheat! Cool recipe as well
Can I say that your fruit recipes this summer have been amazing? And can I request, say, fruit honey cookies? Or bar cookies? That would be outstanding.
I had lavender honey recently, it was gorgeous mixed in with some plain yoghurt. It’s also a great ice-cream flavour!
Are you going to eat these peaches on their own or in something? Just curious
Both!
I would love to do a honey tasting!! Those peaches look so delicious!
I love trying different honeys, especially the darker ones. Now I have another peach idea!!! My friend’s tree is loaded with peaches
That sounds delicious!
Just out of curiosity – do you have to use sugar as well or can you use all honey?
I’m not 100% sure, but I think you need to use sugar + honey. Using all honey would change the thickness or the mixture, which might affect the safety of the recipe, so I’d use sugar + honey just to be safe.
These peaches look delicious! I am all about peaches this week and this recipe is a winner for me! BTW- I see you are from Ithaca? I used to live in that area. My brother went to Cornell. We are heading there next month for a wedding; I can’t wait. It is such a beautiful area. I can’t wait to tour some of the wineries again. Thanks for this delicious recipe. I will definitely be adding this this to my list.
~Jennifer
Yep, I’m in Ithaca, and we love the wineries
YUM! I just pickled some peaches myself, but next time I do some canning I am going to have to try honey!
Ooh, I haven’t tried pickled peaches. I’m not a huge fan of vinegar, so I’m always afraid that I’ll end up not liking pickled fruit if I make it. Does it taste very vinegary?
I won’t say you can’t taste it at all, but I’m also not a vinegar fan and still enjoyed these. The flavor of the spices clings more than anything else. I also decreased the recipe because I, too, have been afraid of whether or not I would even like pickled fruit and didn’t want to have tons of it laying around if I didn’t enjoy it!
Good to know. I’ll have to try pickling some fruit either this summer or next, then!
Did you peel the peaches? Thank you!
I didn’t. A lot of recipes recommend that you peel them, but I don’t mind thetaste or texture of the peels and it saves a lot of work if I don’t peel them!
Julie, do you just eat these as is, or serve them over something?? I’d love some ideas on how to use them! Looks delish!
I pretty much plan on eating these straight out of the jar, though they’d also be great over oats, yogurt or ice cream!
This looks amazing! Do you think it would work with pears? Thanks!
Canning is a very tricky and specific thing; this may work with pears, but I am not sure of the moisture and acidity differences between pears and peaches and how they would affect the processing. I wouldn’t recommend subbing pears in for these peaches unless you plan to refrigerate and eat them all within 3 weeks. However, you may be able to find a safe and tested recipe with pears and honey elsewhere…just be sure it has been well-tested!