Vogel Orchard Peaches

Real Texas Peaches

Fredericksburg Peach Season is underway…

By Ramona & David

Some folks may think of Georgia when you say Peach.  In Texas we say Fredericksburg!

The Vogel family roots run deep in Fredericksburg and Stonewall, Texas’ premier peach growing region.  Jamey Vogel heads up this family operation located closer to Stonewall than Fredericksburg, and the Texas A&M Finance Major grew up in the family business and has expanded it to include more profit centers.

I don’t know how many years I have driven past many other great Fredericksburg peach producers to get to the Vogel Orchard peach operation, but it has probably been since I first tasted Nelda’s Peach Jam on a piece of my toast.  Nelda is Jamey’s mom, and she and other local ladies spend plenty of hours peeling peaches and making this totally addictive spread for my toast and other culinary creations.

You can tell when Peach Season starts in Texas.  The beginning is much like opening day for dove or deer hunting.  You see little peach stands, pickup trucks with signs, and even the grocery stores have peaches.  The peaches in the grocery stores aren’t usually from Texas and they are not as juicy and sweet as the peaches you get at the orchard stands in and around Fredericksburg.

A little warning:  in years when the harvest is not good, some of the roadside vendors don’t sell authentic Fredericksburg peaches, so it is best to know who you are buying from for the best tasting peaches.  It really irks Jamey Vogel and other long time peach producers from the area, but some unpatriotic (my words) producers import their peaches from those lesser states when the Texas orchards are not producing due to weather or other reasons.  That is just one of the reasons we have always stuck with Vogel through the years.

Peach season can start at the end of May and can easily last through late August.  There are several Peach vendors in Fredericksburg, but our favorite is Vogel Orchard’s.

When we lived in Big Lake, which was about 3 1/2 hours driving time each way, we’d drive to get peaches and end up bringing back plenty of extras for our friends.

 

I had the pleasure of talking with Jamey Vogel and even though it’s his busy season, he took the time to visit with us and told us all about peaches.  I brought some of these little jewels home and made several recipes.  You can click on the title hyperlink of the recipe, or if you want to come back later, you can find the recipes in the sidebar under ‘Desserts‘.

We started our tour in the retail store at the fruit stand.  Every time we drive through Fredericksburg, which is less than 1 hour away from us now, we have to stop and get some of Nelda’s Peach Butter.  Nelda is Jamey’s mom and she makes Jams, Jellies, Peach Butter, Peach Chipotle, Cobblers, homemade Peach Butter Ice Cream and Blackberry Ice Cream.

The Vogel Orchards were first planted in 1953 and until 1972 the peaches were sold at the Vogel house, pick-your-own, or wholesale to larger markets.  In 1972, they opened their current fruit stand.

Jamey grew up in the peach business and he was ready to get out of it to go to Texas A&M where he earned an Accounting Degree.  Then after his parents needed to slow down a little, Jamey, his wife Terri, and their kids, Joshua and Baylie moved back in 1998 to take over the farm.

In the kitchen we met Nelda.  This is the heart of the business and where all the delicious goodies are made.  There are no machines that peel the peaches, just long time lady friends peeling away.  Jamey jokes that he pays the ladies to sit with his mom and gossip.  But while they are there, they are peach peeling experts.

While one lady is peeling the peaches, another is slicing and removing the pit, putting them in tubs until they have enough for a recipe.  Nelda Vogel also has a stove in the area and bakes her famous peach cobbler there.  Did I say it smells wonderful?

I asked what the best way to peel peaches was because I had heard that you can blanch them first and then the peel comes right off. Not in Nelda’s kitchen!  They peel so many peaches that she doesn’t want to have to stand over a hot stove blanching peaches.  I easily will take the advice of the peach peeling experts.

This conversation with Nelda intrigued me so much that I had to research the blanching peach method.  We have 2 peach trees at home and I’ve been hand peeling peaches for a couple of weeks so far and the light at the end of the peach peeling tunnel is still way in the distance.  But I do have to agree with Nelda in that I don’t want to stand at a stove.  I sit in front of the TV watching cooking shows and peel hundreds of peaches. I found this YouTube video on the blanching method.  It’s easy enough if you only are peeling a few peaches for a recipe, but like Nelda, I am peeling hundreds of peaches and the blanching method would take too much time.  But if you are just peeling a few peaches, take a look at the video.

How to Peel a Peach

Nelda just put some cobblers in the oven and the aroma makes the anticipation to taste them hard to wait for them to be done.  We’ll come back and taste after we visit the Orchards.

The peach orchards are very impressive and they were first planted in 1953.  The original orchards are about 36 acres with about 2,800 peach trees.  They now have about 70 acres with approximately 6,500 peach trees.  The Vogels have about 20 different varieties of peaches.  I learned that Freestone and Cling are not the variety of the peach, but how the peach is classified.  If the peach is a Freestone peach, this means that the peach breaks away from the pit easily and if it is a Cling peach, like the name says, it clings to the pit. Freestone is the preferred peach to use for cooking with because it’s easier to remove the pit and is usually sweeter.

Weather plays an important part in peach production and whether or not there will be peaches, how sweet they are, and how long the season will be.  Last year there was a very late frost and almost wiped out all the peaches. Drought affects the size and the sweetness and determines how juicy the peach will become.

This year with our 2 peach trees at home, which were planted with 2 different varieties on purpose, one ultimately had peaches on it and one had blooms that frosted.  We had a late frost and the tree that was an early bloomer, lost all the blooms and no peaches this year.  The tree that did produce has kept me peeling for weeks.  We don’t depend on our peaches for income and we really feel for all the peach orchards going through a late frost.  The Vogels picked about 139 boxes total of peaches after the hard frost one year.  This year has been a good year and they are picking an average of 139 boxes a day!

The trees are pruned to keep the peaches low.  Since they are hand picked and no ladders are used, it makes it easier to pick the peaches.  The are picked by color.  They need to have a good red color, with some yellow background and still firm.  When they are picked at the right time, and you take them home, some will be ready to eat right away and some will need to ripen a little more.  All you need to do is place in a paper bag and leave on your counter.  Once they are ripe, if you are not ready to eat right away, you can place them in the refrigerator and they will keep for several more days.  But don’t refrigerate them until they are soft or they won’t ripen fully.

Peach trees begins to produce peaches in year 3 and they peak between 7 – 10 years.  When they are 18 to 20 years old, they’ll start to break down and will be replaced.  The Vogels’ have trees in different areas of their orchards at all various ages.

To ensure that they can grow the same variety that has become a favorite and a good producer, Jamey and the local horticulturist cut budwood from some of the trees.  They sent this off to a nursery where they were grafted onto a root stock and grow the trees until they are ready to be planted in the orchards.

After the peaches are picked they go back to the fruit stand where they are picked through to remove any bad ones.  They are washed to remove any dirt.  Then sorted into the different sizes, boxed and displayed out front to be sold.

Baylie, Jamey’s daughter, was last year’s Stonewall Peach Queen.  It’s a very big deal in that part of Texas and she has a personality to be a great ambassador for the area peach industry.

She’s been in parades, and has had a lot of fun.  If you visit the Vogel Orchard Fruit Stand, you will probably buy your peaches from her too. Baylie plans to go off to college and I’m sure the family hopes she’ll choose Texas A&M.  You can never have too many Aggies in one place.  Gig ’em Aggies!

We ended our visit deciding which peaches we’d take home and use for our recipes.  Oh and don’t forget the cobbler that was baking in the oven.  We had to taste some fresh Peach Cobbler with Nelda’s homemade Peach Ice Cream.

You can visit the Vogel website at VogalOrchard.com for directions, what peaches are available, and more.

You can watch my interview with Jamey Vogel, I hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoyed visiting the Vogel Orchards.

 

3 Delicious Peach Recipes:

Fresh Peach Pie

LATTICE-TOP FRESH PEACH PIE

Published July 1, 2000. From Cook’s Illustrated.*

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:

Fresh peach pies are often soupy or overly sweet, with a bottom crust that is soggy or undercooked. We wanted to create a filling that was juicy but not swimming in liquid, its flavors neither muscled out by spices nor overwhelmed by thickeners, and we wanted a crust that was well browned on the bottom.

We peeled and sliced the peaches and found that all they needed in the way of flavor was sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and a dash of salt. To thicken the juices, we used a little cornstarch, but still, we needed to do more. A lattice-top pie crust was our solution—while it requires a bit more work than making a regular double-crust pie, we found that it’s worth the effort. Not only is it pretty and very traditional on peach pies, but it serves an important purpose: The structure of a lattice top allows for maximum evaporation while the pie cooks—the juices released by the fruit cook down slowly while baking so the filling isn’t soupy. For easy assembly, we rolled and cut the dough, then froze it so the strips were firm and easy to handle.

SERVES 8

If your peaches are larger than tennis balls, you will probably need 5 or 6; if they’re smaller, you will need 7 to 8. Cling and freestone peaches look identical; try to buy freestones, because the flesh will fall away from the pits easily. Potato starch can usually be found in the Kosher section of the supermarket. If you don’t have or can’t find potato starch, substitute an equal amount of pulverized Minute tapioca. Serve the pie with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. See illustrations below for Peeling the Peaches and Weaving and Crimping the Lattice Top.

INGREDIENTS

Pie dough

• 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon table salt
• 7 tablespoons vegetable shortening, chilled
• 10 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 1/4 sticks), chilled, cut into 1/4-inch pieces and frozen for 30 minutes
• 10 – 12 tablespoons ice water

Peach filling

• 6 – 7 medium peaches (ripe, about 6 cups)
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice from 1 lemon
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• pinch ground cinnamon 
• pinch ground nutmeg
• pinch table salt
• 3–4 tablespoons potato starch (or substitute pulverized Minute tapioca)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Pulse flour, sugar, and salt in food processor workbowl fitted with steel blade until combined. Add shortening and process until mixture has texture of coarse sand, about 10 seconds. Scatter butter pieces over flour mixture; cut butter into flour until mixture is pale yellow and resembles coarse crumbs, with butter bits no larger than small peas, about ten 1-second pulses. Turn mixture into medium bowl.

2. Sprinkle 5 tablespoons ice water over mixture; with rubber spatula, use folding motion to evenly combine water and flour mixture. Sprinkle remaining 5 tablespoons ice water over mixture and continue using folding motion to combine until small portion of dough holds together when squeezed in palm of hand; add up to 2 tablespoons more ice water if necessary. (Dough should feel quite moist.) Turn dough onto clean, dry work surface; gather and gently press together in cohesive ball, then divide into 2 pieces, one slightly larger than the other. Flatten larger piece into a rough 5-inch square and smaller piece into a 4-inch disk; wrap separately in plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 hour, or up to 2 days, before rolling.

3. Remove dough from refrigerator (if refrigerated longer than 1 hour, let stand at room temperature until malleable). Roll larger dough piece to 11 by 15-inch rectangle, about 1/8-inch thick; transfer dough rectangle to cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. With pizza wheel, fluted pastry wheel, or paring knife, trim to even out long sides of rectangle, then cut rectangle lengthwise into eight strips, 1 1/4-inches wide by 15 inches long. Freeze strips on cookie sheet until firm, about 30 minutes.

4. Roll smaller dough piece on lightly floured work surface or between two large sheets of plastic wrap to 12-inch disk. Transfer dough to pie plate by rolling dough around rolling pin and unrolling over 9-inch pie plate or by folding dough in quarters, then placing dough point in center of 9-inch pie plate and unfolding. Working around circumference of pie plate, ease dough into pan corners by gently lifting dough edges with one hand while pressing around pan bottom with other hand. Leave dough that overhangs lip of pie plate in place; refrigerate dough-lined pie plate.

5. Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees, bring 3 quarts water to boil in large saucepan, and fill large bowl with 2 quarts cold water and 2 trays ice cubes. To peel peaches; first, with a paring knife, score a small x at the base of each peach. Next, lower the peaches into boiling water with a slotted skimmer. Cover and blanch until their skins loosen, about 2 minutes. Use a slotted skimmer to remove the peaches to ice water and let stand to stop cooking, about 1 minute. Finally, cool the peaches, then, starting from the scored x, peel each peach, halve and pit it, and cut into 3/8-inch slices. Toss peach slices, lemon juice, 1 cup sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and potato starch or Minute tapioca (3 tablespoons for moderately juicy peaches, 4 tablespoons for very juicy ones) in medium bowl.

6. Turn mixture into dough-lined pie plate. Remove dough strips from freezer; if too stiff to be workable, let stand at room temperature until malleable and softened slightly but still very cold. Following “Weaving and Crimping the Lattice Top,” below, form lattice top and place on top of peaches. Lightly brush lattice top with 1 tablespoon water and sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar. Place pie on baking sheet and bake until crust is set and begins to brown, about 25 minutes. Rotate pie and reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees; continue to bake until crust is deep golden brown and filling is bubbly, 25 to 30 minutes longer. Cool on wire rack 2 hours before serving.

TECHNIQUE

WEAVING AND CRIMPING THE LATTICE TOP

PEELING THE PEACHES

Fresh Peach Ice Cream

 FRESH PEACH ICE CREAM

Published July 1, 1998. From Cook’s Illustrated.*

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:

For our peach ice cream recipe, we found that the preparation of the peaches and syrup was key: Letting the peaches stand for a bit with the sugar, then cooking them gently, then straining them, adding the syrupy juice to the custard before churning, and adding the peaches themselves near the end of churning gave us a smooth, creamy, and very peachy ice cream.

MAKES ABOUT 1 QUART

Both the cooked peaches and the custard mixture must be cooled to 40 degrees before you churn them. Since they are fine in the refrigerator overnight, you may want to prepare them the day before you plan to churn and serve the ice cream. You’ll get the very best results from using in-season, fully ripened peaches, but in a pinch, you can substitute 2 cups IQF (individually quick frozen) sliced peaches and replace the vodka with peach-flavored liqueur. The ice cream is at its peak when eaten within four hours of churning, although covered, it will keep in the freezer for up to two days.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 medium-size ripe peaches, peeled, pitted, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 2 cups)
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice from 1 lemon
• pinch table salt
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 6 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 cups whole milk
• 1 1/3 cups heavy cream
• 6 large egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons vodka

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Stir peaches, lemon juice, a pinch salt, and 1/2 cup sugar in medium-size nonreactive saucepan to combine; let stand until a pool of syrupy liquid accumulates and peaches soften slightly, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

2. Position sieve over medium bowl set in an ice-water bath; set aside. Heat milk, cream, and 1/2 cup sugar in medium-size heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until steam appears, 5 to 6 minutes. Turn off heat. Meanwhile, whisk yolks and remaining 6 tablespoons sugar in medium bowl until pale yellow. Stir half the warmed milk mixture into beaten yolk mixture until just blended. Return milk-yolk mixture to saucepan of remaining warmed milk mixture. Heat milk-yolk mixture over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with wooden spoon until steam appears, foam subsides, and mixture just begins to thicken (see illustrations below) or instant-read thermometer registers 180 degrees (mixture must not boil or eggs will curdle). Remove from heat, and following step 3 in illustration, immediately strain custard into prepared bowl. Cool custard mixture to room temperature, stir in vanilla, then cover and refrigerate until instant-read thermometer registers 40 degrees, at least 2 and up to 24 hours.

3. Meanwhile, heat softened peaches and their liquid, stirring occasionally, over medium-high heat until peaches are tender and flesh has broken down, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to bowl, stir in vodka, and refrigerate until cold, at least 4 and up to 24 hours.

4. Strain chilled peaches, reserving liquid. Stir reserved peach liquid into chilled custard mixture; pour into ice cream machine canister and churn, following manufacturer’s instructions, until mixture is frozen and resembles soft-serve ice cream, 25 to 30 minutes. Add peaches; continue to churn until combined, about 30 seconds longer. Transfer ice cream to airtight container. Freeze until firm, about 2 hours.

STEP BY STEP TO SMOOTH CUSTARD

Fresh Peach Cobbler

FRESH PEACH COBBLER

Published July 1, 2004. From Cook’s Illustrated.*

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:

The most perplexing problem we encountered when developing our peach cobbler recipe was the wide variation in juiciness from peach to peach, which sometimes resulted in a baking dish overflowing with liquid. We tried a technique used to make another American dessert classic—strawberry shortcake—in which the fruit is macerated in sugar to draw out its juices. Sugar did indeed draw off some of the moisture from the peaches, but we had to replenish the cobbler with 1/4 cup of the drawn juice to guarantee a peach cobbler recipe that would yield the same amount of liquid every time.

SERVES 6

If your peaches are firm, you should be able to peel them with a vegetable peeler. If they are too soft and ripe to withstand the pressure of a peeler, you’ll need to blanch and shock them before peeling. In the biscuit topping, low-fat or nonfat plain yogurt can be used in place of whole milk yogurt, but the biscuits will be a little less rich. If you live in an arid climate, the biscuit dough may require up to an additional tablespoon of yogurt for it to form a cohesive dough. Do not prepare the biscuit dough any sooner than the recipe indicates; if the unbaked dough is left to stand too long, the leavener will expire and the biscuits will not rise properly in the oven. This recipe can be doubled to serve a crowd. Use a 13 by 9-inch baking dish and increase the baking times in steps 2 and 4 by about 5 minutes. Serve the warm cobbler with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. Leftovers can be reheated in a 350-degree oven until warmed through.

INGREDIENTS

Filling

• 2 1/2 pounds peaches, ripe but firm (6 to 7 medium)
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar (1 3/4 ounces)
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice from 1 lemon
• pinch table salt

Biscuit Topping

• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour (5 ounces)
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon table salt
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter (cold), cut into 1/4-inch cubes
• 1/3 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees.

2. For the filling: Peel peaches (see note), then halve and pit each. Using small spoon, scoop out and discard dark flesh from pit area. Cut each half into 4 wedges. Gently toss peaches and sugar together in large bowl; let stand for 30 minutes, tossing several times. Drain peaches in colander set over large bowl. Whisk 1/4 cup of drained juice (discard extra), cornstarch, lemon juice, and salt together in small bowl. Toss peach juice mixture with peach slices and transfer to 8-inch-square glass baking dish. Bake until peaches begin to bubble around edges, about 10 minutes.

3. For the topping: While peaches are baking, in food processor, pulse flour, 3 tablespoons sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to combine. Scatter butter over and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, about ten 1-second pulses. Transfer to medium bowl; add yogurt and toss with rubber spatula until cohesive dough is formed. (Don’t overmix dough or biscuits will be tough.) Break dough into 6 evenly sized but roughly shaped mounds and set aside.

4. To assemble and bake: After peaches have baked 10 minutes, remove peaches from oven and place dough mounds on top, spacing them at least 1/2 inch apart (they should not touch). Sprinkle each mound with portion of remaining 1 teaspoon sugar. Bake until topping is golden brown and fruit is bubbling, 16 to 18 minutes. Cool cobbler on wire rack until warm, about 20 minutes; serve.

*Reprinted with permission from Cook’s Illustrated Magazine. For more information about this magazine or other publications by America’s Test Kitchen call 800-526-8442. Selected articles and recipes, as well as subscription information, are also available online at www.cooksillustrated.com

Tagged as: david werst, Fredericksburg Peaches, Stonewall peaches, Texas peaches, Vogel Orchard