Here are almost 100 recipes celebrating the sweet and subtle peach, the embodiment of southern charm. Peaches are featured in savory appetizers and entrees, classic and innovative desserts, alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks, and condiments like salsas, ketchups, jellies and jams. The recipes evoke tastes of the past - like peach cobbler or peach ice cream - but appear in tandem with more dramatic/unexpected recipes from chefs in peach-growing regions, including Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina. As many as 28 U.S. states are estimated to grow peaches commercially - but the South is the area most romantically associated with the divine fruit. Chapters include an introduction to The Joy of Peaches, an overview of the fruit's origins and history, a look at its nutritional value and other bits of chemistry, and a recounting of the author's Peach Pilgrimage: his summer spent in pursuit of peaches across the South, from Texas to the Carolinas. He interviews growers and chefs in each region, weaving their quotes into background of lively storytelling and personal anecdote. DeMers shares a wealth of peach photos, from peach-in-basket beauty shots to work shots of farmers on ladders picking, to peach dishes being served. Trucks, tractors, containers, grocery shelves... all aspects of the peach business are reflected in his accompanying photo essay. In addition to photos from DeMers gorgeous food photos by Shannon O'Hara, (Energy Cuisine) bring the recipes to life.