Recipe: Peach Dessert

This recipe comes from my husband's Aunt Lanita who passed just before she would have turned 41. From what I hear, she was an excellent cook and baker, and until this post, I'm not sure this recipe ever existed on the internet. It's about time, because y'all have been missing out! This is a real crowd pleaser.

This is my hubby's favorite dessert (besides pecan pie). It is a no-bake layered dessert that requires a minimum of 2 hours of refrigeration and a decent amount of self-control.

Aunt Lanita's Peach Dessert

Crust

1/2 c. salted butter, melted

3 pkgs. graham crackers, crushed

Instructions:

1. Crush graham crackers in food processor; slowly add melted butter. Optional: reserve 1/4 c. to sprinkle on top of finished dessert. 

2. Press crust into 13x9 casserole dish. Set aside.

Creamy Whip

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

2 pkgs. Dream Whip, no substitutes

1 cup milk

1/2 t. vanilla

1/2 c. powdered sugar

Instructions:

1. Beat cream cheese until smooth; set aside.

2. Beat Dream Whip, milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar until it has a whipped consistency. Fold in cream cheese; mix until thick and smooth.

3. Spread 1/2 of mixture onto crust; reserve remaining half.

Fruity Jello Layer

2 c. water

3/4 c. sugar

2 T. cornstarch, heaping

1 small pkg. (3 oz.) orange Jello

4 c. sliced peaches, with skin removed (fresh is best)

 

Instructions:

1. Combine water, sugar, cornstarch, and jello; cook until thickened, about 2 minutes. Cool (in refrigerator or ice bath).

2. To prepare fresh peaches, blanch in boiling water, place in ice water, and remove skin. Slice thinly.

3. Once mixture is cooled, but not fully set-up, stir in 4 c. of sliced peaches until mixed. 

4. Spoon fruity jello mixture on top of creamy whip layer and smooth out.

5. Spoon remaining half of creamy whip onto fruity jello layer and smooth out. (It is a little easier to spread if the fruity jello layer has set up some, but either way works and tastes delicious.)

6. Optional: Sprinkle reserved portion of crust onto top layer of creamy whip.

7. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

 

Cook's Note: This recipe is time consuming, but is worth the toil. You can also switch out the fruit and jello flavors, for example, with fresh raspberries and raspberry jello. I've tried peach jello, and trust me, orange works best.

Shown with optional graham topping

Recipe: Lemon-Berry Syrup

Lemon-Berry Syrup (for those days you can't have lemon-filled donuts)

Ingredients:
2 T. cornstarch
1/4 c. Real Lemon juice
splash lime juice
1/4 c. sugar
3/4 c. water
2 T. strawberry jelly*

Mix cornstarch with lemon juice, lime juice, sugar and water until smooth. Warm using medium heat. Bring to a boil. Stir in jelly and remove from heat. Serve warm. Serves 5-6.

Cook's Note: This goes great on puffy pancakes. Here's a puffy pancake recipe similar to the one I use, although I don't use vanilla or cinnamon in the batter, and I add more melted butter. I'm sure you could fill doughnuts with this syrup as well--you may need to add 1-2 T. more of cornstarch. *I used Smucker's Natural Strawberry jam without High Fructose Corn Syrup so it isn't overly sweet.

What else might this be tasty with?