Peach Collins
Peaches, I buy them whenever I see them. All summer long. It makes no matter how many bushels I already own, or how many fruit flies I have to chase around the kitchen. I always think I need just a few more peaches.
I eat peaches out of hand, over the sink– the juice running everywhere. I know you know that image, you’ve done it yourself. But I also like to use peaches in both sweet and savory recipes– from tarts to BBQ sauce to cocktails.
Yep, cocktails. In fact, I just made a peach of a cocktail that I felt I needed to share. It’s a summery riff on the classic Tom Collins. It’s easy to make, it’s pretty in the glass. It’s a little sweet and a little sour. It’s a light little sparkler, but this Peach Collins is still plenty potent enough to work its summer magic.
It starts with fresh peaches, muddled Caiprhina style. In fact, if I had made this with light rum or cachaca, we’d be calling this a riff on a Caprihina. But I didn’t use either of those liquors. I used vodka, so it seems more like a Collins to me.
I know I often say that I am not really a vodka drinker. But the one thing vodka does really well, in my opinion, is taking on flavors. Vodka is a great choice for infusing with just about anything. It’s easy to do and you’ll have a mighty tasty flavored liquor for your effort. So you could infuse your own vodka with peaches for this cocktail recipe if you wanted. But both Absolut and Stoli make peach-flavored vodka that tastes great. And that’s the route I went.
Peach Collins serves 4 CLICK here for a printable
adapted from Sunset Magazine
- 1 c granulated sugar
- 1 c lemon juice
- 1 c fresh peach, cut into 1/2‑inch dice, divided
- 1 c peach-flavored vodka
- 1 c club soda
- 4 slice peaches, as garnish
Make the lemon syrup: Add the sugar and lemon juice to a medium-sized saucepan set over medium heat. Swirl the pan occasionally until the sugar dissolves completely. Remove from heat and allow to come to room temperature. Mix the lemon syrup, 1/2 cup diced peach (with skin) in a large pitcher with a heavy bottom. Using a wooden spoon muddle the mixture together until the peaches break up a bit, but don’t make a mush of it. Pour in the vodka, and stir to combine. Divide the un-strained mixture between 4 tall Collins-style glasses. Add the remaining diced peaches alternating them with ice cubes to fill each glass to the top with ice. Top with club soda, and garnish with a peach slice.
Peach Collins serves 4 CLICK here for a printable recipe
as I do when the warm temps plunge and the herbs fade. Our basil is punking out but both our sage plants are doing well. Do you think it would be too bad to leave out the walnuts, I don’t like them (or pecans).
I just said goodbye to my basil plant yesterday while shedding a few tears. Sage is a great idea!
I’m going to miss my basil too, my plants have been looking pretty sad lately. I’ve yet to try sage in a pesto, sounds like a really flavorful addition to pesto.
arugula, and even cilantro pesto, but never sage. I DO love sage though, especially during this time of year because it makes me think of Thanksgiving turkey. Perhaps this sage pesto will be gracing my holiday table this year?
Even a container garden isn’t advisable on our balcony — the wilting heat and humidity coupled with a good amount of Manila air pollution do not make for ideal growing conditions. I’m happy enough with the basil I can find here, but I’ve also tried making a pesto with native ingredients such as malunggay (moringa) leaves and pili nuts. As for sage — sigh — I have yet to see those lovely leaves here. I’ll just have to imagine how delicious your recipe must taste…
love, love sage! i must start growing it! this looks delicious!
I’ve never made sage pesto, or pesto with walnuts before. It sounds like it would work out nicely and your dish looks delicious. This weekend I threw together a cilantro pesto. It wasn’t too far off from original basil, but definitely had a slightly more summery light taste. Pesto is great! Next time I’m in a situation with too much sage, I’ll definitely be trying your recipe.
Making pesto out of sage is a stroke of good luck. We have wild sage growing everywhere around here but I know the flavour is stronger. I could perhaps mix a smaller amount in with some basil or even just add more parsley.
I’ve never tried sage pesto, but I love sage, so this sounds great! I freeze my basil in ice cubes too, without the cheese, then thaw and mix the parmesan in during the winter. It’s not nearly as good as fresh, but it’ll do in a pinch, especially with hot pasta dishes. Now I’m craving Liguarian Pasta Trenette!
Nice gnocchi Greg.…. and tasty pesto too.…
Really? Basil purchased just for the blog…(smile) Glad you do what you do as I love visiting your blog!
We always made our pesto with walnuts: the best was when they were fresh: we’d peel off the bitter peel (which would come right away if you quickly blanched them). The “meat” of walnuts can be so incredibly sweet.
When I can’t fresh ones, I soak the dried ones in water (changing a few times) for a day or two: the bitterness will be lost.
I just ripped out the last of my basil, pureed it with olive oil & salt and froze it in ice cube shapes. Then, I planted cilantro, sage & parsley in its place. It’s like losing your childhood dog–replace it with a bright fun new puppy and it lessens the blow. Kind of.