Farm | Food

What’s in Season: Peaches at Kiawah River Farm + Charleston Receipts Peach Meringue Pie

Come summer in the Lowcountry, finding a fresh peach isn’t much of a chore. Beginning in June and lasting for three glorious months, peach season offers abundant opportunities to enjoy the fruit as an afternoon snack or whip up a peach cobbler for the perfect after-supper treat. 

As the official state fruit of South Carolina, the state’s journey to becoming the “Tastier Peach State” (sorry, Georgia!) began in the 1920s when farmers used the fruit as an alternative crop in response to the boll weevil’s decimation of the cotton industry. Today, South Carolina is a peach haven with over 18,000 acres of peach farms across the state. 

For the freshest South Carolina peaches, be sure to stop by Rosebank Farms and Storey Farms at Kiawah River. Rosebank Farms offers a wide variety of fresh produce, as well as local honey, dips, banana bread, pound cake, boiled peanuts and fresh seafood, and Storey Farms offers free-range eggs, pimento cheese and pasture-raised chicken and pork.  

Ripe peaches consist of a fuzzy exterior skin with a juicy interior surrounding a hard seed, or pit. Don’t get them confused with their close relative – nectarines – which can be differentiated by their smooth skin and lack of fuzzy exterior. Grown in warmer climates, peaches are high in fiber, vitamins and minerals, as well as antioxidants. As one of Mother Nature’s sweetest and most delicious treats, peaches are the perfect addition to pies, cobblers, salads, ice cream and more.  

Once you have your peaches, try your hand at baking Peach Meringue Pie from Charleston Receipts, the oldest Junior League cookbook. It’s sure to be a fan favorite all summer long.  

Ingredients: 

5-6 ripe South Carolina peaches 

1-2 tablespoons sugar 

Few drops of lemon juice 

2 egg whites 

4 tablespoons confectioners or granulated sugar 

Instructions: 

Prepare a 7-inch baked pie shell. Peel and slice fresh peaches, sprinkling a little sugar and lemon juice on top. Whip eggs until stiff and then beat in the sugar, ½ teaspoon at a time. Continue beating until mixture is heavy and stands in peaks. Arrange the peach slices in the shell and cover with meringue. Bake at 300 ° for 15 minutes until the top of meringue is golden brown.