Herbs can be a great way to add flavor to any food. In our cooking class last night at The Gathering Place East we made fresh corn on the cob with loads of herbs and a tasty dish of peaches with basil and raw sugar. You might not ordinarily think about peaches and basil as a combination but they work surprisingly well together. Karen Kennedy, a horticultural therapist that provides programs at The Gathering Place, used a wonderful spicy globe basil but if you don’t have access to that kind, regular basil will certainly suffice.

Peach Basil Topping

Use on shortcake, biscuits, puff pastry, frozen yogurt or ice cream

Ingredients:
4 cups sliced peeled peaches (about 3 pounds)
1/3 cup sugar (we used raw sugar)
1/3 cup small basil leaves
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Procedure:
Combine sliced peaches, sugar, basil and lemon juice in a bowl. Let stand for one hour.