Peach Pie Filling

Got an abundance of peaches? Make Peach Pie Filling and tuck it away in the freezer for whenever you need it. This recipe is perfect for pies, pastries desserts, or any other sweet treat that calls for peach pie filling.

Homemade Peach Pie Filling

Peach season is upon us and if we're lucky, we may find ourselves with plenty of those beautiful orange stone fruit to turn into peach pie filling. Or, maybe you just love peach pie and always want to have a jar of filling on hand in the freezer (which is a good move)!

Premade peach pie filling can be paired with all kinds of baked goods, such as peach crisp, peach turnovers, pies, or even a cake filling. It's also delicious as is straight from the spoon, with a scoop of ice cream or if you are trying to be a bit light: yogurt.

It freezes well too, so this recipe is one of the best ways to use up any large quantities of peaches you might have when they are in season.

Ingredients Needed

Here is an overview of the ingredients needed for this recipe. The full recipe is listed below in greater detail.

• ripe, but firm peaches (see more on that below)
• sugar
• cornstarch
• lemon
• nutmeg (this adds some depth to the filling without being obvious and without distracting from the peach flavor)
• almond extract (same for this, it helps it feel more peachy, but it can be skipped if there is a nut allergy)
• butter (this is stirred in at the end and it adds a richness to the filling)

What Type of Peaches to Use

It's important that your peaches are ripe. Meaning if you use an unripe flavorless peach in this filling, those factors won't magically change when you add sugar and cook it, even even though the peaches are cooked down a little bit.

A good way to ensure you have a quality peach, aside from buying it in-season and from a reputable source, is to smell it and feel it. The peach should smell peachy! And it should give in easily with a little gentle squeeze.

How to Ripen Peaches

If you have local peaches that are in season, but they aren't quite ripe, that's ok! You can "condition," AKA ripen, the peaches by leaving them at room temperature, stem side down.

I usually leave them on a kitchen towel-lined sheet tray. Depending on the peach, it can take 1-3 days. Check them every day.

Once they are fragrant and just soft, they are ready to use.

Just be careful not to use an overripe peach. It'll turn to mush when cooked.

Want to use high-quality frozen peach? That's absolutely fine, so long as you know they're good quality and will contribute good peach flavor. Let them defrost in the sugar and lemon juice in the pot in step 1 of the recipe.

How to Peel Peaches

The peaches should be peeled for this recipe.

I wrote an entire Guide to Peeling Peaches if this is new to you. You can check that out. Or, a tl:dr section from it:

The easiest way to peel a peach is through the blanching method. Blanching is a cooking technique that involves briefly submerging a food item in boiling water and then immersing it in ice water to halt the cooking process rapidly.

Blanching the peach helps loosen the skin so it easily peels off, and in my opinion, is the best way to peel a peach.

Here are the brief instructions:

1. Boil a large pot of water
2. Clean and dry the peaches
3. Slice a very thin "x" on the bottom of the peach
4. Place the peaches in the water for about 30-60 seconds
5. Immediately transfer the peaches to an ice bath
6. Once cooled, transfer to a towel to dry
7. Carefully peel off the skin in four sections.

How to Make Peach Pie Filling

This is a very simple recipe. Essentially, peaches are mixed together with sugar, lemon juice, and cornstarch and then cooked. There are a few tricks you should follow to ensure you get the best flavor in your filling.

The first is that the recipe calls for you to macerate the peaches for about 15 minutes. This helps dissolve the sugars before cooking and pull out some of the moisture from the peaches.

If you are using frozen peaches, let it sit for an additional 5-10 minutes until the liquid has come out.

Be gentle stirring the peaches while they cook. Peaches are delicate and the goal is not to break them down, but instead just gently cook them until the cornstarch has cooked enough to thicken the mixture.

At the very end of the cooking process, add in some butter and almond extract to the hot mixture. The butter adds a delicious richness, and the almond adds a depth of flavor that complements the peaches very nicely.

Ways to Use Peach Pie Filling

Okay, now you've got your peach pie filling. What should you use it for?

• pies (see more about this below)
• peach crisp (use this crisp recipe or this pie crumble recipe for topping it)
• filling for a cake
• in a pastry (use this puff pastry dough or store-bought)
• in a galette (use this butter dough)
• in pop tarts (use this pop tart dough)
• hand pies (use this dough)
• over waffles or pancakes
• with oatmeal
• plain served with ice cream
• with yogurt

How to Turn This Into a Pie

This recipe makes about 6 cups of peach pie filling, which is the exact amount you need to make a standard 9" peach pies.

To turn this into a pie, you'll need either one batch of All Butter Pie Crust (which makes enough for a double-crust pie) or a single pie crust and a crumble topping, to make a peach crumb pie.

The pie filling needs to be completely chilled before you can add it to the pie crust. So make your pie filling one day ahead of time. Then roll out the pie dough, assemble the pie, and bake! You can bake the pie at 425ºF for 25 minutes on the lower shelf, and then reduce the oven temp to 400ºF and move the pie up to the middle shelf for an additional 20-30 minutes. Bake just until the top crust is nice and golden brown. No need for the pie filling to bubble since it has been precooked.

How to Store It

Because it has a high sugar content, peach pie filling will keep for quite a while in the fridge. I've never kept it for more than 5 days, as I've always used it up, but it likely could last a little bit longer than that.

It will last for a minimum of 6 months in the freezer. After three months it will start to lose some of its flavor, but it's still safe to eat for up 12 months, though it's not ideal.

I don't recommend canning this. Canning is so specific and I have not tested this to make sure it passes the amount of sugar and acidity needed to make it safe for canning. I'd recommend freezing it instead, for long-term storage.

More Pie Filling Recipes:

• Sour Cherry Pie Filling
• Strawberry Pie Filling
• Blueberry Pie Filling
• Apple Pie Filling

More Peach Recipes

• Peach Cobbler
• Peach Ice Cream
• How to Freeze Peaches

I am so honored when you make a recipe from my site! If you make this Peach Pie Filling, please leave a comment and a star rating with your experience! If you have any questions about this recipe, feel free to comment here, too!