recipe: poached peaches

my kitchen is a mess.  for reals.  a hot, hot mess.  as i mentioned before, we're upgrading our microwave cart and it's now in the middle of our dining room underneath a drop cloth.  it's been sanded, but it has not been fully primed yet.  once primed we will then have to let it dry and then paint it.  we're also going away this weekend to visit family and friends in boston which means i am panicking about getting this done.  not having a microwave cart in my little kitchen means i'm down major countertop space.  which means major cooking headache.  which means really grumpy gina.  not even kidding.  can you sense the anxiety?

the point of my story is... i didn't really cook tonight.  just an arugula salad and three different types of bruschetta.  it was actually yummy.  we had a tomato, a pesto, and a beet and goat cheese.  despite my crankiness in the kitchen, dinner was good.  but i didn't come here to tell you about bruschetta.  no way, jose!  i came here to tell you about peaches.  poached peaches.  in bourbon.  i am now dancing because even typing that makes my mouth water.  uh huh...  i got this recipe from the latest issue of martha stewart living.  i tweaked it a bit, but the core is from ms. martha.

2 quarts peaches
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
dash of nutmeg
1 cup of bourbon

bring a large pot of water to boil.  cut a small X into the bottom of each peach.  boil peaches for about 2 minutes and transfer to ice water bath.  let cool.  peel and pit and cut into wedges.

bring 4 cups of water, sugars and nutmeg to boil in large saucepan, stirring until sugar dissolves.  add peaches and bourbon and simmer until peaches are tender.

spoon out peaches and transfer to to large bowl.  cook syrup over medium heat until reduced by half.  pour over peaches and let cool.

divide peaches among jars (this filled 2 one liter jars for me).  pour syrup over peaches.  refrigerate.

these are hella good.  messy to make, but worth it.  apparently i stink at peeling peaches.  i have enjoyed them thoroughly over vanilla ice cream.  i also think these would be a super cute gift to bring to the host at a dinner party.  or you could serve them for dessert at your own dinner party and then give your guests a jar to take with them.  how cute is that?  the magazine also has some cutie labels to put on your jars.  adorable!  i would have taken a picture of the peaches over ice cream, but i ate it too fast.  my bad.