a peachy weekend.

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After last week's deliciously cool end-of-summer weather, I was on board for Fall. I broke out my lined rain boots, ordered my coffee hot a few times, and Ant and I considered (wisely this consideration never came to fruition) taking out our A.C.

But this weekend was a return to the hot days of summer. I put the boots back in the closet, reverted to my usual "small iced coffee with soy milk" order, and rolled my eyes at the thought that we almost retired our A.C. for the year. And, as one of our last hurrahs to the summer season, we did some good old-fashioned peach picking.

After munching on a few insanely juicy peaches throughout the day, I decided to cook up something fun. After scouring a bunch of my go-to cookbooks, not quite finding anything I was looking for (or that could be accomplished with our dwindling fridge and cabinet supply), I settled for a pseudo Tart Tatin. Using Mark Bittman as my guide, I improvised ... peaches in place of apples, brown sugar instead of the granulated we didn't have, a mini cast iron pan rather than the 10-inch specified, and a spur of the moment and completely makeshift batter instead of the classic pastry dough.

The result ... well, take a look ...

My peach Tart Tatin recipe, in all its improvised glory ...


   3 peaches, washed and sliced about 1/4 inch thick (some bigger, some smaller)
   4 tablespoons softened butter
   1/4 cup (roughly) brown sugar
   1/2 cup Pamela's Baking and Pancake mix
   1 egg
   1 Tbs honey
   water, around 1/4 cup


   Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. In a 6-inch cast iron pan (or large cast iron, or any oven-proof skillet ... I'd double the recipe if using a larger pan) press into the bottom the butter and brown sugar. Lay the peach slices on top of the butter/sugar, overlapping them as you go. When the peaches are all in place, put the pan on the stove over medium heat for about 15 minutes, until the sugar and butter turn a darker brown. Meanwhile, mix together the baking mix, egg, and honey. Slowly add in the water, mixing as you go. The batter should be thin and pourable without becoming runny. Pour the batter over the top of the peaches and put the pan into the oven for around 20 minutes, or until the top turns golden brown.