James Villas

Congealed Pickled Peach and Pecan Salad

Preparation info

  • Difficulty

    Easy

  • Makes

    6

    servings

Appears in

The Glory of Southern Cooking

The Glory of Southern Cooking

By James Villas

Published 2007

  • About

What could be more Southern than to combine pickled peaches, pecans, and cream cheese to make a congealed salad? Of course, hostesses throughout the South love to serve this type of salad at church, bridge, and charity luncheons, but I’ve also discovered that nothing goes better with a glazed baked ham or virtually any meat or poultry casserole. I’m always very suspicious of commercial jars of pickled peaches and strongly urge you to learn to put up your own during the summer months.

Ingredients

  • One 3-ounce package lemon-flavored Jell-O
  • ¾ cup boiling water
  • ¾ cup pickled peach juice
  • One 3-ounce package cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 3 to 4 pickled peaches (cloves removed), chopped
  • ½ cup chopped pecans
  • Bibb lettuce leaves

Method

In a bowl, combine the Jell-O and boiling water and stir till dissolved. Add the peach juice, stir, and chill till the mixture begins to thicken, about 1 hour. Beat with an electric mixer till light and fluffy.

In another bowl, cream the cheese with the mixer till smooth, then add the peaches and pecans and stir till well blended. Add the cream cheese mixture to the Jell-O mixture, stir till well blended, transfer to a 1-quart mold, and chill till firm, about 2 hours.

Serve the salad on lettuce leaves.

© 2007 All rights reserved. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.