Keep your kitchen fresh with a homemade canned Honey Peach Pie Filling recipe that is shelf stable and offers you the fresh taste of peach pie all winter long!
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases at no cost to you. This article originally published Sept 29, 2016. It has been updated for your convenience.
This last few weeks our home has been overwhelmed with peaches! Our peach tree that we planted 3 summers ago finally produced. And it produced BIG, which you know if you’ve been following us on Instagram!
Not that I’m complaining. I’ve been rather proud and excited for this peach tree to share its luscious juicy produce!
But this means a plethora of peach recipes have been coming out of my kitchen! I’ve been busy processing them to preserve their juicy goodness for enjoyment through the winter.
Now you can’t have fresh peaches and not make a fresh peach pie! And let me tell you it is a favorite! But what about enjoying a peach pie in the winter months?
Well, I have you covered there too! Especially since Thanksgiving is coming up, as we all know the favorite part of Thanksgiving after the Thanksgiving turkey is all the amazing pies!
By canning your own Peach Pie Filling, you not only ensure that you know every ingredient in your peach pie filling, but it also ensures that making the best peach pie in the winter month is super easy!
Just make the best flaky crust recipe. Fill it with a jar of our peach pie filling. Put on a top crust and then bake just like a fresh peach pie! Simple as that!
The other great thing that I love about homemade canned peach pie filling is that it’s not as hard as you would think. I’ve actually put off canning my own pie filling because I was scared it would be difficult! Boy, was I wrong!
The hardest part is simply peeling peaches and pitting the peaches! After that, the rest is a breeze! So let’s get into the fun!
The First step is to blanch peaches for easy peeling. Then pit the peaches and slice them into small slices or chunks. Whichever you prefer for the texture of your pie.
Put your peaches into a lemon wash of 1 Tablespoons fresh Lemon Juice to 2 cups water. And drain. This prevents the peaches from turning brown.
You don’t need to let the peaches soak it in long. Really I just put the peaches in, stir a bit to ensure that each peach is coated and then drain.
Now we will be making the liquid for the filling.
The cool thing with our Peach pie filling recipe over other recipes is that I do it without sugar. Not that sugar is really all that bad when we’re talking about a pie. It’s not like we are trying to be healthy. I mean it’s a PIE for goodness sakes!
But we actually really like the flavor of Honey or Maple in our pie filling. It doesn’t overpower the peach flavor like sugar can.
This year I used Honey because Maple Syrup can be pricey when you are canning 7 quarts at a time. But you can easily substitute Maple Syrup for the Honey just as easily if you prefer.
Another thing to take note of is the thickener. Many people keep asking us about canning without pectin or Ultra Gel. So I went on a hunt.
After a few weeks of research, I found the answer! If you are going to be canning the peach pie filling (which is the entire point right?) then you must use Ultra Gel or Clear Jel or box pectin like Sure-Jell.
No other thickener is approved via the FDA for canning. Why? Because other thickeners such as flour, arrowroot, cornstarch, etc breakdown in the canning process. Which changes the viscosity and therefore doesn’t heat the product appropriately to kill the bacteria to make canned foods safe on the shelf.
Likewise using Chia Seeds is not an option either as it changes the acidity of the mixture which also means the bacteria is not killed properly and the food is not safe for shelf storage or long-term storage.
So while the idea of using something else is grand, for safety purposes we will continue to use Ultra gel just like my Mom did.
Before you begin preparing the peach pie filling, make sure you sterilize your jars and prep the lids. I’m assuming you know how to do that, if not take a look at How to Can Peaches for instructions on that step.
Canned Honey Peach Pie Filling Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 quarts peaches (approximately 24 cups)
- 4.5 cups honey
- 1 cup ultra gel
- 6 1/4 cup Apple juice
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 3/4 cup lemon juice
Instructions
- Combine Honey and 1 cup juice to thin the honey
- Combine in large sauce pan juice, cinnamon, almond extract.
- Slowly Sprinkle in Ultra gel as you stir to prevent lumps
- Stir til smooth.
- Add honey mixture
- Heat until thick and bubbling
- Add lemon juice
- Cook 1 minute
- Add peaches and Cook additional 3 minutes
- Portion into prepared sterile Quart jars
- Process in Water bath canner according to Elevation
- -1,000 ft - 30 minutes
- ,001-3000 feet - 35 minutes
- ,001-6.000 feet - 40 minutes
- above 6,000 feet - 45 minutes
When you use honey you need to thin the consistency. So before you begin the actual peach pie filling, use 1 cup of the apple juice from the recipe and combine it with honey.
Combine the remainder of the juice, cinnamon, and almond extract in a large saucepan. And I do mean large. This recipe makes enough for 7 quarts!
Add the Ultra Gel to the mixture.
Now Ultra gel can be tricky if you’ve never used it before. It thickens and thickens QUICKLY. And it also has a tendency to lump. You can’t just dump it in there. You need to sprinkle it slowly as you stir to ensure it blends easily and doesn’t lump.
Add the honey mixture and mix until smooth. You will notice that the mixture is already thickening. I told you the ultra gel works FAST. So make sure you are ready to keep working quickly.
Heat until the mixture is thick and bubbling. Then add the lemon juice and cook for an additional minute.
Add the sliced peaches and cook an additional 3 minutes.
Portion the peach pie filling into the quart jars.
Leave a 1-inch headspace in each jar. The peach pie filling likes to expand quite a lot during processing.
Now this recipe makes 7 quarts. But from time to time I actually end up with 8 quarts! I am not sure why sometimes it is 7 quarts and other times it is 8 quarts. But either way, I always prep 8 quart jars to be on the safe side.
Wipe the jars for any spills, place the lid and tighten the ring.
Finally, process in a Water bath canner according to Elevation.
Now for something easier – this year I used a steam bath canner. And it was a dream come true! It was much faster than waiting for all that water to heat up.
I experience less mess, and it was much easier to work with. But the processing time is the same whether you are using a regular water bath canner or the steam bath canner.
Process Time at Altitudes: | |||
0-1,000 Feet | 1,001-3,000 Feet | 3,001-6,000 Feet |
Above 6,000 Feet |
30 minutes | 35 minutes | 40 minutes | 45 minutes |
Remove your Quart Jars from the canner and set on a towel in a draft-free location to cool.
Leave alone for 24 hours for the Jars to seal themselves and cool.
And remember how I said this peach pie filling likes to expand? Even with giving 1-inch headspace some of my jars still oozed peach pie filling after the canning process. Another reason to have the jars set on a towel. Don’t worry, it happens.
Once the jars have set for 24 hours check to ensure each jar sealed properly. If it sealed you can wash the jar, remove the ring lid, label and store in the dark storage room until needed.
If it didn’t seal then place the jar into the fridge and use within a week.
Maybe I’m just lucky, but I have yet to have a jar not seal.
Now you can enjoy a delicious homemade peach pie any time of the year using your own homemade Honey Peach Pie Filling! It will offer a richer flavor than the canned filling you purchase at the store. And you can feel great knowing it is 100% homemade by you!
Cari
Thursday 14th of September 2017
This looks like a delicious recipe! Do you think I could successfully substitute pears for the peaches?
Amber
Tuesday 26th of September 2017
Yes, you can. I haven't tried the honey with pears combo yet, as we haven't been able to get a good supply of pears yet to can again. But the process is the exact same for canning pears. You can also can pears in white grape juice to cut down on sugar and retain the amazing pear flavor.