It was 75° today. Overcast, but warm. I could wear shorts. I’ll take it.
It was also the perfect day to start the BBQ Sauce of the Week.
I’ve been wanting to try a peach bbq sauce for a while and thought I’d start there. Peaches aren’t exactly in season right now, so I went for the next best thing – frozen slices. I actually like frozen fruits and vegetables. With produce being grown all over the world with the prime concern being shipping and not flavor, frozen can ofttimes be your best bet. Unlike it’s fresh counterpart, it’s picked and processed when it’s ripe and ready to eat.
So, armed with a 1-pound bag of frozen peaches, I went to work.
Peach BBQ Sauce
- 1 pound peaches, peeled
- 1/2 cup onion, chopped
- 1/2 cup bell pepper, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 dried New Mexico Chilis, broken up
- 1/4 cup whiskey or bourbon
- 1 can diced tomatoes with juice
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tbsp molasses
- 1/4 cup white vinegar
- 2 tsp paprika
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- salt and pepper
Saute onion and bell pepper until translucent. Add garlic and quickly saute. Add chilis and dried spiced and cook until fragrant – about 3 minutes.
Add whiskey and mix well. Add tomatoes and continue cooking until thick.
Use an immersion blender and puree.
When it’s as smooth as you can get it, strain through mesh strainer, discarding solids.
Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper- or more cayenne – as desired.
This came out pretty good. It had a nice peach flavor, the whiskey gave it a nice balance, and it was just smoky-spicy enough.
If I hadn’t been making Phoebe’s baked beans – that call for chipotles in adobo – I probably would have made this with chopotles. I think the smoky chipotle would work just a bit better than the smoked paprika. Regardless, this worked well!
Speaking of little sister’s baked beans… here’s the recipe for those. The only baked beans I ever make, anymore.
Phoebe’s Baked Beans
- 1/2 cup minced shallots
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1/2 cup tomato puree (I use tomato paste – I never have puree in the house!)
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons molasses
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 chipotle chiles, canned in adobo sauce, seeded and chopped
- 2 (28-ounce) cans baked beans
Preheat oven to 300°.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add shallots; sauté 4 minutes or until golden. Add cumin and garlic; sauté for 1 minute. Add tomato puree and oil, and cook for 2 minutes or until thick, stirring constantly. Add remaining ingredients (except beans.). Reduce heat; simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Combine beans and shallot mixture in a 2-quart baking dish. Bake at 300° for 1 hour or until thick and bubbly.
They are so easy and just soooooo good!
I was on a BBQ roll, so I also made a three-bean salad – with five beans. I mean, who’s counting, right?!?
Bean Salad
- 1 cup green beans, trimmed, blanched, and cooled
- 1 cups green and wax Italian beans, blanched and cooled
- 1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can canellini beans, rinsed and drained
- 1/2 red onion, sliced in sticks
- 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 3 tbsp tarragon vinegar
- 1 tsp herbs d’Provence
- salt and pepper, to taste
Mix it. Chill it. Eat it.
I need to think about what I want to do next. Maybe something with a pulled pork…
The wheels are turning…