Summertime in South Carolina

In South Carolina, summertime means a whole lot more than heat and humidity. Summertime means time spent with family and friends and, of course, delicious local flavors. Regardless of if you’re having a backyard barbecue or heading out to let the professionals handle the cooking and cleaning, South Carolina’s farmers are hard at work getting fresh produce ready to serve across the state and beyond. 

For those interested in taking care of the cooking, these summertime recipes for peach cobbler and Southern tomato pie are sure to be a hit at your next gathering. Just be sure to look for the Certified South Carolina logo when you are shopping for groceries!

South Carolina Peach Cobbler Recipe

Ingredients

• 8 Certified SC-grown peaches, peeled, pitted, and sliced into wedges
• ½ cup white sugar, divided
• ½ cup brown sugar, divided
• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into ½-inch cubes

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In large bowl, combine peaches with ¼ cup of white sugar, ¼ cup brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon juice, and cornstarch. Toss to coat peaches and pour into a 2 quart baking dish. Bake for 10 minutes.
2. While the peaches bake, in a large bowl, whisk to combine flour with remaining sugar, baking powder, and salt. Using your fingers or a pastry cutter, cut in butter with flour mixture until it resembles a coarse meal. Stir in ¼ cup of boiling water until a dough comes together.
3. Remove peaches from oven and cover with drop spoonfuls of topping. Return to oven and bake until topping is golden, about 30 minutes.

South Carolina Tomato Pie Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 9-inch deep dish pie shell
• 4 Certified SC-grown tomatoes, thinly sliced cross-wise
• 1 teaspoon salt, plus more
• 2 cups grated cheddar
• ¾ cup Dukes® Mayonnaise
• ½ cup chopped onion
• ¼ cup fresh basil leaves, chopped (about 10 leaves)
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• Pepper

Directions

1.  In an oven preheated to 375 degrees, bake pie shell for 10 minutes. Remove then reduce heat to 350.
2. Place a colander in sink, and lay tomato slices in a layer on the bottom. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of salt. Let tomatoes drain for 10 to 15 minutes then transfer to flat paper towels to pat off any excess moisture (this prevents the pie from being watery). While tomatoes drain, use a medium bowl to combine cheese and mayonnaise. Set aside.
3.  In the bottom of the pie shell, lay half of the tomato slices in bottom of pie shell.  In a small bowl, mix together onions, basil, and garlic, and salt and pepper to taste.  Sprinkle half of mixture over tomatoes in pie crust.  Layer second half of tomato slices over mixture and top with the rest of the onion/basil mixture. Spread cheese mixture over pie.
4. Bake for until lightly brown, about 30 minutes. Serve warm.

And, if you want to leave the cooking (and cleaning) to the professionals, visit www.freshonthemenu.com for a full list of restaurants committed to serving Certified South Carolina ingredients!