Peaches

Peaches

How to Buy, Store and Cook Peaches

To make sure you have a good for you juicy, sweet peach here is what to look for: 
Always buy organic Peaches are always on the Dirty Dozen list. 12 Foods You MUST Eat Organic
Peaches bruise easily so don’t use your fingertips to check for firmness. Hold the peach in your whole hand.
There should be a slight give to the flesh; not rock-hard or mushy.
Make sure there is not green around the stem meaning they aren’t fully ripe)
Avoid ones that have shriveled skin as that means they’re old.
A well-defined crease.
Ripe fruits yield to gentle pressure and feature sweet aroma.

How to Store Peaches

To ripen peaches keep them on the counter at room temperature until they are ripe.
Once they are ripe, store peaches in the crisper bin of your refrigerator (they will keep for up to five days).
Tip: 
To quicken the ripening process, place peaches in a paper bag.
Slightly hard but mature fruits can be kept at room temperature until they ripen. 

Tips for Eating and Cooking

Ripe peaches that have been stored in the refrigerator should be brought to the room temperature before being eaten to enjoy their full flavour.

Wash them in cold running water rubbing them gently to remove the peach fuzz just before eating.  Eat fresh ripe peaches whole along with skin as this is where many of the nutrients are.

To prepare for baking, cut the peach lengthwise deeply until the hard seed felt and then remove the seed.

Sliced peaches will turn brown with the exposure to air due to conversion in iron form from ferrous oxide to ferric oxide. If you are serving them sliced, it is best to rinse slices in water added with few drops of fresh lemon.

Find you have more peaches on hand than you can eat or make into something right away? Try freezing them, slice them, lay them on a baking tray and put in the freezer for a few hours until they’re frozen through. Then put the peaches into a re-sealable plastic bag and freeze until ready to use. They’ll keep at least 6 months (longer in a free-standing freezer) and are perfect to use in baking. It is much the same as Freezing Berries.

16 Health Benefits of Peaches

Peaches have been grown for centuries. They were first cultivated in China where they are considered a symbol of immortality and friendship.

I consider them a key powerfood along with staples like apples and pears. I just wish they were available longer!

16 Ways Peaches Fortify Your Health

1. Peaches are the perfect snack food for losing weight. A peach makes you feel full and keeps you from overeating. The bonus: one peach only contains about 35-50 calories and no fat!

2. Fight obesity-related diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Peaches are rich in phytochemicals called phenols that act as antioxidants.

3. Keep the skin healthy. Vitamin A and C make peaches a great natural moisturizer; they’re often used in cosmetics. These vitamins can help regenerate skin tissue.

4. Reduce hair loss with its positive effect on the scalp.

5. A healthy stress-reliever that helps reduce anxiety. Peaches are often referred to as the ‘Fruit of Calmness’ in Hungary.

6.  Helps prevent cancer with selenium — a mineral with antioxidant properties that may help protect cells from damage.

7. Peaches can help remove worms from the intestines.

8. Have a diuretic effect which helps cleanse your kidneys and bladder.

9. Peaches can calm an upset stomach.

10.  Compounds in stone fruits could help with “metabolic syndrome,” according to Dr. Luis Cisneros-Zevallos, AgriLife Research food scientist involved in a study at the American Chemical Society in Philadelphia.  Cisneros-Zevallos says, “Our work indicates that phenolic compounds present in these fruits have anti-obesity, anti-inflammatory and anti-diabetic properties in different cell lines and may also reduce the oxidation of bad LDL cholesterol which is associated with cardiovascular disease.”

11. Those suffering from gout and rheumatism are recommended by dieticians to eat peaches because peaches tend to have a diuretic and a light laxative effect.

12. Peaches are thought to be an aphrodisiac.

13.  Peach flowers have sedative properties .  A remedy for restlessness includes boiling peach flowers in water along with some honey.

14.  Inhibit tumour growth activity. Peaches have excellent antimicrobial and antioxidant activity according to research.

15.  Chronic bronchitis, coughs and gastritis are relieved with the medicinal tea of the leaves and bark of peach trees.

16. Peach tea is used as a kidney cleanser in China.

Peach Calories and Nutrition

The calories in large peach is only 70 but more important for weight management and health are its many other powerful nutritional benefits. To discover peaches are a symbol of immortality and friendship go  to Health Benefits of Peaches.

Nutrition:

One large peach has less than 70 calories and contains 3 grams of fiber.
It is a good source of vitamins A and C.
There is 1.5 grams of protein and 0.4 grams of fat in one large peach.
A large peach provides 332 mg potassium, nearly 10 percent of the daily recommended amount.
Contain high quantity of antioxidants, especially chlorogenic acid which reduces inflammation and controls the body’s aging process.
Amount Per 100 grams
Calories 39
                                                   % Daily Value*
Total fat 0.2 g 0%
Saturated fat 0 g 0%
Polyunsaturated fat 0.1 g  
Monounsaturated fat 0.1 g  
Cholesterol 0 mg 0%
Sodium 0 mg 0%
Potassium 190 mg 5%
Total Carbohydrate 10 g 3%
Dietary fiber 1.5 g 6%
Sugar 8 g  
Protein 0.9 g 1%
Vitamin A 6% Vitamin C 11%
Calcium 0% Iron 1%
Vitamin B-6 0% Vitamin B-12 0%
Magnesium 2%  
*Per cent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

Sources include: USDA

Caution:  The peach pit contains hydrocyanic acid which is a poisonous substance. Since it does not taste good, most people are unlikely to eat it.

History of Peaches

Peaches have been grown since the prehistoric ages and were first cultivated in China. They are considered a Chinese symbol of immortality and friendship.  The Romans thought the peach originated in Persia; its Latin name reflects this: ‘Prunus persica’ meaning ‘Persian Apples ’.

Peach trees first came to America by Columbus on his second and third voyages.
The first peach orchard in the USA was established in Florida in 1565.
In 1779, peaches were harvested at the mouth of the Niagara River in Canada for local consumption.
By 1875, there were 375,000 peach trees in Ontario, Canada (not one of those varieties remains today).