Utica/Rome ‘Donut Peaches’ are Juicy and Candy Sweet

Have you tried these cute, flat peaches? They go by many names, including the Saturn' peach, doughnut peach, flat peach, belly-up peach, UFO peach, hat peach, pumpkin peach, squashed peach, bagel peach or pita peach. They are delicious no matter what you call them.

Donut peaches are flatter than a regular peach. Their thin skin is yellow and red, and less fuzzy than many other peaches. It's juicy, sweet, and creamy with almond undertones, it's lower in acid, and the pit easily pops out.

Mother Earth News describes the donut peach tree as frost-hardy, highly pest/disease-resistant, easy to grow in most areas, and produces twice as many peaches as other varieties. Specialty Produce says there are at least twenty different cultivars of flat peaches in existence today and are all descendants of the Pan Tao from China.

Donut peaches are a good source of vitamin C, vitamin A, fiber, and beta-carotene. They also contain potassium, fluoride, iron and are high in the antioxidants lutein, zeaxanthin and beta-cryptoxanthin.

Donut peaches are harvested in late spring through the end of summer and are available at many local farm stands in including Kid's Farm Market 9282 Kellogg Road-in New Hartford NY.