Peaches. Voluptuous, juicy peaches loaded with flavor, to be savored at any time of day. The season begins in mid-June and continues through early September, with white peaches, whose skins are pale green tinged with red, and whose pale white flesh has a delicate sweetness tinged with bitter overtones, and with yellow peaches, whose skins are gold tinged with orange and whose flesh is sweeter and more direct.

In the midst of it all there a veriety of heirloom peaches, and nectarines, whose flesh is like that of yellow peaches, though their skins are smooth, not fuzzy, and at the end come late-harvested Cotogne, ugly wrinkled peaches whose yellow skins are shot with green, and whose flesh clings to the pit like a drowning man to a raft. They're getting harder to find now that Italian consumers are beginning to value appearance over flavor, but if you do perchance find some in an Italian market, grab them, because their richness is incomparable.

If they're ripe, and this is one of the great problems with peaches: Unlike apples and some other kinds of fruit, they don't continue to ripen off the tree. Combine this with the delicacy of a ripe peach, which will bruise if you look at it sharply, and you suddenly understand why it can be so hard to find good peaches outside of peach-growing areas -- they spoil before they get to market, or arrive green and tasteless because the producer picked them too soon.

Assuming the peaches you find in your market look ripe and are unblemished, before you buy a bag sniff one or two to make sure they have that heady peach aroma. If they don't the fruit won't taste of much, and you're better off buying something else.

How? The classic Italian way is to slice the peach into a glass, fill the glass with wine, and then eat the slices, spearing them with the point of the knife. The peach adds a delightful accent to the wine, which can be either red or white, depending upon what is produced in the area (in Central Tuscany it's usually red).

Want More? Some Italian Peach Recipes:
Pesche Ripiene, Stuffed Peaches
Cremolata di Pesche, a Rich Peach Sherbet
Torta di Fichi e Pesche, Fig and Peach Cake
Pesche Sciroppate al Moscato, Candied Peaches in Moscato Syrup
Marmellata di Pesche, Peach Marmalade
General Information on Peaches and more Recipes

Peaches Elsewhere on About:
Peach Barbecue Sauce
Grilled Peaches
Peach Crisp
Peach Melba Meringue
Thai-style Grilled Scallops with Mango/Peaches and Red Bell Pepper