Oklahoma Fresh Peach Pie

Nothing says Oklahoma in the summer quite like a fresh peach pie. With fresh peaches from a farmer's market and an old Betty Crocker cookbook, nirvana is achieved.

The town of Edmond has a Farmer's Market on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and farmers from all around the state bring freshly picked fruits, vegetables, and berries. In spite of my late morning appearance, vendors still had ample supplies of irresistibly succulent produce for me to gaze upon. I had to draw the line at carrying a watermelon around, but far too many fragrant, rosy peaches and red, sun-warmed tomatoes - all from Guthrie, a town just north of Edmond - found their way into my bag.

The tomatoes became star ingredients for sandwiches and salads. The peaches that didn't get eaten out of hand over the sink were pie-worthy.

Oklahoma Fresh Peach Pie
Modified from the original Betty Crocker recipe

Pastry for a 9-inch 2-crust pie, unbaked
5 cups sliced fresh peaches
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 cup sugar (to start, but adjust for the sweetness of your peaches)
1/4 cup flour
cinnamon to taste (I used 3/4 teaspoon)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons butter, diced

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Mix peaches, lemon juice, and vanilla. Whisk together flour, sugar, and cinnamon; stir into peach mixture. Pour into pastry-lined pie pan and dot with butter. Cover with top pie crust (cut slits in it) or lattice crust; seal and flute edges.

Bake 15 minutes at 425, then reduce to 375 and continue to bake another 30-35 minutes or until filling is thickly bubbling through slits or lattice in crust. Edges of pie crust may need to be covered with an aluminum foil strip to prevent excessive browning.