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This time of year, I unabashedly indulge in my obsession for fresh Connecticut peaches. While the harvest this year was affected by out state’s notoriously fickle weather–this time February’s brutal subzero weather was to blame for reduced yields–several local orchards, including Bishop’s (www.bishopsorchards.com), where I purchased mine, still managed to stock their bins with beautiful pink and yellow fruits that ripened beautifully after sunbathing in the back yard during the day and being tucked in a bag with an apple or banana overnight. After devouring quite a few of these ripened beauties out of hand, over the sink, juice dripping down my arms, I turned to my favorite fruit crisp recipe: www.zip06.com/features/20200813/celebrating-a-pandemic-power-outage-birthday-party.

This year I used cloves instead of cardamom and almond extract instead of vanilla extract. I subbed oatmeal flour for almond flour. I do have an instant pot and love using it, but you could certainly make the fruit filling in a big dutch oven, I’m sure. I did not have coconut oil, so I used butter in the crisp topping, which bumps the recipe out of its vegan lane. One thing that is essential, non-negotiable, is the kosher salt or some other coarse salt in the crisp topping.

There are two things I love about this recipe in all its permutations. First, because the fruit filling is made separately from the crumbly topping, it’s easy to pack up and share with friends, the fruit filling in one jar and the crumbly topping in another, to be assembled just before eating. Second, the cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and cardamom gently point us in the direction of autumn in our future and, along with it, the anticipation of all sorts of baking to be enjoyed and shared, leaving the house perfumed by bubbly fruit and warming spices.

I plan to fully enjoy the rest of the summer and more peaches. But here also is a recipe I hope to try that will make use of fall’s apples with those warming spices.

Along with cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and cardamom, warming spices/ingredients can include black peppercorns, mace, coriander, cumin, star anise, allspice, turmeric, chiles, mustard, along with garlic and horseradish. If you have any great recipes that make use of any of those and would like to share it with us come fall, let me know at p.mcnerney@shorepublishing.com.

Also, thanks to those of you who wrote or called in response to my last column. I appreciate it!

¼ cup butter, cubed; ½ cup chopped pecans; ¼ cup packed brown sugar; ¼ cup molasses; 2 medium tart apples, peeled and thinly sliced

2. Place 1/4 cup butter in a 12-inch cast-iron or other ovenproof skillet. Place in oven until butter is melted, 4 to 5 minutes; carefully swirl to coat evenly. Sprinkle with pecans and brown sugar; drizzle with molasses. Arrange apple slices in a single layer over sugar, cut side down.

3. For gingerbread cake: in a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Beat in egg, then molasses. In another bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, ginger, salt and cloves; gradually add to creamed mixture. Stir in hot water.

4. Pour over apples. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 35-40 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before inverting onto a serving plate. If desired, serve warm with applesauce.

If you want perfectly ripe local peaches, your best best is to head out to a pick your own place. Be sure to call first to make sure it is open. Next best is a local farm market. Make sure the peaches, even if a bit hard, are pink and yellow (no green). Then you can ripen them up in a day or so by putting them out in the warm sun, and, overnight, by storing them in a closed paper bag with an apple or banana. Photo by Pem McNerney/The Source