Last night Chris watched the Bears game over at a friend’s house. So, once Evie went to bed I had a rare few hours to myself. What to do?! First on my list was making a batch of homemade laundry detergent. While I normally use Ivory soap, this time I tried half a bar of Fels-Naptha, an old-fashioned laundry soap known to remove stains. I’ll be sure to let you know how it works once I run a load!

Second on the night’s agenda? Homemade peach jam. I’ve never made this before, but using the basic outline for my homemade strawberry jam brought delicious results! Feel free to increase or decrease the amount of sugar used. I think most recipes call for a LOT more sugar, but I love the fresh taste of peaches on their own. In my opinion, the simpler the better.

My Peach Jam Recipe

3 large organic peaches, peeled, rinsed and chopped
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons orange juice (or lemon juice would probably work well, too)

Put the chopped peaches into a saucepan and mash well using a potato masher. Don’t worry about chunks – they will soften and add some wonderful texture to the finished product. Turn heat on to medium and, stirring often, heat until bubbling. Reduce heat to low and stir in sugar and juice. Leave on the heat for at least 35-45 minutes, stirring often to prevent the jam from sticking to the bottom of the pan and burning. Once the mixture has reduced and thickened, remove from heat.

I put this on a Kashi toaster waffle last night and it was beyond delicious. I topped a couple slices of toast with it for a mid-morning snack today and I thought I was in summer heaven!