Capture the rich sweetness of peaches now with this easy sauce. Enjoy it now as is, topped with nice cream (see notes below), or over pancakes or shortcake. Freeze some for later. Perfect whether you are cooking for one or for a crowd.
Active time: 15 minutes. Total time: about 3 hours and 15 minutes. Serves 8. Dairy free, vegan, and gluten free.
6 cups peeled and pitted peaches, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/4 teaspoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup sugar (100 grams)
1 tablespoon cornstarch
pinch ground cloves
- Oil the inside of a slow cooker for easy cleanup later if you want. A 1 1/2 quart (6 cup) slow cooker holds this recipe snugly, but you can use a larger one if you prefer.
- Put two-thirds of peaches in the slow cooker. Mix sugar, cornstarch, and cloves together so the cornstarch doesn’t clump, then pour mixture over peaches and stir. Add remaining peaches.
- Cover slow cooker and turn it on. Choose high temperature if you want peach sauce in about 3 hours or low if you want it in about 6 hours.
- After a few hours, stir peach sauce. Ideally, peaches will now all be covered in juice. If not, stir again after another hour.
- Serve warm, at room temperature, or chilled. My favorited is warm topped with nice cream. Refrigerate any extra for up to a week or freeze for a year.
Tips
- How to peel peaches. Put a few peaches at a time into a pot of boiling water, boil for 1 minute, and then put immediately into a big bowl of ice water for another minute or so. Cut off any bad spots and slide off the skin. I look for “free stone” peaches which have fruit that separates easily from the pits. “Cling” peaches hang on tightly so you have to cut them apart.
- Nice cream is plant-based ice cream. I love the new cashew-milk varieties from So Delicious, like the creamy cashew one shown above. Vanilla is good too.
- Make a difference when you cook by choosing smaller appliances over the oven when you can in the summer. You’ll save energy and keep your kitchen cooler.
