Skip to main content

Baked peaches perfect for a sunny sunday lunch

I love peaches but how often do you get them in this country when they are really ripe and chin-drippingly luscious? Lets face it, the answer is almost never.
Now help is at hand, particularly if, like us, you're partial to a bit of baked fruit. We have now had this recipe a couple of times and not only does it bring out the best in supermarket peaches it is an absolute walk in the park to make.
Serve it with a generous dollop of mascarpone as the recipe suggests, or with my personal preference, Creme fraiche or indeed vanilla ice cream and you will be transported to a little piece of Italian heaven, particularly if the sun is shining.
The recipe is from The Telegraph Magazine a couple of weeks ago, is written by Rachel Roddy and features recipes from Rome

Recipe
Good things happen when peaches are baked with butter and almonds: the fruit shrivels and its flavour is intensified; the butter and juices create a sticky, rose-tinted syrup; and the amaretti or almonds give a crumbing texture. By the time they’re ready, the peach halves should be slumped as deeply in the dish as my family are in armchairs after Sunday lunch. The peaches are best about 45 minutes after coming out of the oven, so they are just a little warm and the sticky juices are thick but still spoonable. If you do leave them overnight, keep them in the fridge, but remember to pull them out about half an hour before eating.
ADVERTISING

Serves 4

Ingredients

  • 50g soft unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
  • 4 ripe peaches
  • 6 amaretti biscuits or 50g ground almonds
  • 50g soft brown sugar
  • 1 egg yolk
  • the grated zest of 1 unwaxed lemon
  • mascarpone, to serve

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C/gas mark 4 and butter an ovenproof dish.
Rinse the peaches and rub them dry. Cut them in half, remove the stone and use a teaspoon to scoop away any hard flesh or fragments of stone. Arrange the peach halves cut-side-up in the oven dish.
Wrap the amaretti in paper or put them in a small plastic bag, then crush them using a rolling pin. In a small bowl, mash together the butter, sugar, amaretti, egg yolk and zest. Spoon a walnut-sized blob of this mixture into the hollow of each peach half.
Bake for 40 minutes, basting a couple of times, or until the fruit is tender, golden and a little wrinkled at the edges. Allow the peaches to sit for at least 30 minutes before serving with mascarpone.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Crack potatoes courtesy of Ottolenghi. Harissa and confit garlic roast potatoes

Another recipe from Ottolenghi's Simple, another recommendation from Will Saunders.   I know its the middle of summer but who doesn't love a roastie? These little tinkers are so good that they are like crack, class A calories. The clever bit is the addition of semolina and caraway seeds which adds a new level of crunchiness to add to the delicious warm heat of Harissa. Heres the recipe These make a lovely, spicy change from the traditional Sunday roasties. They’re especially good with spiced roast meat. Serves six to eight. 2 large heads garlic, cloves separated and peeled 130g goose or duck fat 4 sprigs fresh rosemary  6 sprigs fresh thyme  2kg maris piper potatoes, peeled and cut into 5cm chunks 40g ground semolina 2 tsp caraway seeds, toasted and lightly crushed 2 tbsp rose harissa Flaky sea salt Heat the oven to 150C/300F/gas mark 2. Put the garlic, fat and herbs in a small ovenproof pan or saucepan for which you have a lid. Cover and roast for 40 minut

Nigel Slaters deceptively brilliant monkfish

Lisa discovered this recipe in her favourite Nigel book. It is one of those fish, 'but not as we know it Jim' recipes. Not just because Monkfish is the fish that can best impersonate meat but also because of the marinade ingredients that are more often featured with lamb. It's not difficult to do but the flavour is a revelation, which makes it a perfect recipe in my book. This can be cooked on a grill pan or a barbecue. Ingredients 3 bushy sprigs rosemary, leaves finely chopped 4 anchovy fillets 2 large cloves garlic salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 large lemon, juice only 3 tbsp olive oil 800g/1½lb monkfish fillet Method Pull the leaves from the rosemary stalks and chop them finely, then tip them into a bowl large enough to take the fish. Rinse the anchovy fillets and smash them to a rough pulp with the flat edge of your chopping knife. Peel the garlic, crush it flat, then smash it to a purée in the same way. Stir together the herb, anchovy and garlic, adding a grind

Sea Bass on mushroom potatoes with salsa Verde

I felt the overwhelming need to cook something new on Saturday night. I didn't want the tired and tested I wanted to explore new culinary waters. However combined with this desire was an equal and opposing force, driven by being absolutely knackered, that meant it had to be simple too. I returned to one of Jamie's early books, to a recipe that IO had meant to do on countless occasions but never quite got round to. I have done several versions of Sea Bass on a bed of potatoes, some that I have written about on this blog. The one question I would have is about the thickness of the potatoes and the length of time they need to be cooked through ... in my oven I reckon they need about 10 minutes more than the recipe suggests. I would suggest a bit of a trial run if you are going to do it for a dinner party ... however once you have given it a whirl I think this makes for a very easy recipe for a crowd. Here's the recipe. Roasted slashed fillet of sea bass stuffed with herbs, bak