Bountiful

Pick. 

Pit.

Preserve.

Repeat! 

That seems to be my life these days. Our bumper crop of apricots is finally ripe, and will not go to waste.  We've been using a dehydrator  for  some batches, and prepping others for freezing by cooking them briefly in a light syrup of dark brown sugar and brandy.  Here's my recipe if you'd like to give it a try:


4 cups of halved, pitted apricots*
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 Tablespoons cheap brandy


Combine in a non-stick sauce pan over medium heat.  Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally.   Cover, reduce heat, and let simmer 5-10 minutes, until apricots are tender.
Allow fruit and syrup to cool to room temperature then pack in  containers (I use plastic bags rated for freezer use) and freeze.
Alternatively, you can remove the apricots from the syrup with a slotted spoon and continue to cook down the syrup to a thicker consistency. Serve apricots and syrup over ice cream, pancakes, pork loin, etc. Enjoy!

* For best color, toss apricots - as you pit them - into a mixture of 2 quarts of water and 2 Tablespoons of "Fruit Fresh" (dextrose, ascorbic acid, citric acid).  Lemon juice and water would probably do the same thing...


Next up?  Apricot fruit leather!