Technically speaking, the blueberry may be the new king of Georgia fruit*, but the peach will always be our queen. That’s why this weekend in the ATL, you can celebrate peaches at three farmers market events.
Sorry, Blueberry. This weekend, it’s Peach’s turn. Slow Food Atlanta is honoring Georgia’s still-beloved fruit at three events under its Peach Jam banner:
Thursday, June 28, East Atlanta Village Farmers Market, 5:30 to 7 p.m.: Peach Cocktail Contest. Metro bartenders will serve up their peach concoctions in a quest for the “best cocktail” award from a team of judges. Event-goers can also vote for the “people’s choice” award while enjoying Farm Burger sliders a special peach cask beer provided by Terrapin Beer Co.
Saturday, June 30, East Lake Farmers Market, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.: Peachapalooza Cook-off. Amateurs and pros compete for separate titles and Peoples Choice bragging rights at this third annual competition. Anything (with peaches) goes: entrees, appetizers, sandwiches, baked goods, drinks. The amateur winner will even get 100 bucks. Sorry, pro winner: You’ll get a plaque.
Sunday, July 1, Grant Park Farmers Market, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.: Peach Cobbler Contest. You won’t believe the wide range of takes on this classic Southern dessert. Marketgoers can enjoy samples –and peach breakfast sandwiches from Farm Burger—while a team of judges chooses the best cobbler among entries made by amateurs and some pros. I’ll be returning as a judge this year.
Want to compete this weekend? You can still sign up. Click here for an entry form for the Peachapalooza on Saturday; click here for an entry form for the cobbler contest on Sunday. Or email slowfoodatl@gmail.com or visit slowfoodatlanta.org for more details.
Know of any other upcoming peach celebrations in metro Atlanta? Let us know, and we’ll add them to our Food Event Calendar and post them here.
*If the peach ranking troubles you, take heart: The rankings by category don’t mean a heckuva lot—mostly because the traditional categories for counting these things in the annual Georgia Farm Gate Value Report, compiled by University of Georgia’s College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences, is pretty screwed up. Pecans, for instance, actually beat out both blueberries and peaches in the fruit and nuts category, with 51.9 percent of production. But since pecans are a nut, I guess we’re all ignoring them. Meanwhile, watermelon also did better than peaches in term of total cash value, but no one’s noticing because it’s in the vegetable category … along with a bunch of other biologically-correct fruits, like tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and eggplant. So go figure.
