I grew up eating wonderful desserts my mother baked nearly every day — crisp sugar cookies, fudgy brownies, rich banana bread. Nothing fancy or too complicated, just simple, homespun desserts filled with deliciousness. Coincidentally, some of the yummiest ones were, baked fruits, desserts made with apples, pears, or peaches, and at my father’s request, a scoop of vanilla ice cream always found its way to the top. While these old-fashioned baked fruits truly are timeless, I’ve updated some of them with crunchy fillings, flavored whipped cream, mascarpone, or crème fraiche.
ALMOND-STUFFED PEACHES
Makes 6
This recipe uses ground almonds and amaretti cookies to fill the peaches. The rum or dessert wine adds a bit of a kick. Serve the peaches with vanilla ice cream or one of the flavored whipped creams that follow.
1/2 cup ground almonds
6 amaretti cookies, crumbled
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons white rum or sweet white wine
6 peaches, halved and pitted
6 cinnamon sticks
Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, for serving
1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the almonds, cookies, brown sugar, and rum or wine. With a melon ball cutter or spoon, scoop out enough pulp from the center of each peach to create a 1-inch-deep cavity.
3. Arrange the peaches, cut-side up, in an ovenproof baking dish; fill each with the almond mixture. Top with a cinnamon stick. Cover the dish with foil.
3. Bake the peaches for 30 to 35 minutes, or until tender when pierced with the tip of a sharp knife. Let cool.
4. To serve, put 2 peach halves into a shallow bowl; spoon the juices on top. Serve with the topping of your choice.
MASCARPONE CREAM
Makes 1 1/2 Cups
8 ounces mascarpone
1/2 cup heavy (whipping) cream
1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or with a hand mixer), beat mascarpone, cream, sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Cover and refrigerate.
LEMON CURD WHIPPED CREAM
Makes 2 Cups
2 cups heavy (whipping) cream
2 to 3 tablespoons prepared lemon curd
In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or with a hand mixer), beat cream and lemon curd until stiff peaks form. Cover and refrigerate.
PEACH MELBA “REVISITÉE”
Serves 4
The original Peach Melba dessert, invented by chef Auguste Escoffier in the early 1890s, was a lovely concoction of peaches and raspberry sauce topped with vanilla ice cream. Other versions have substituted fresh raspberries, strawberries, even melted red currant jelly. This “revisited” recipe, one that I discovered on a trip to France a few years ago, adds crunchy praline and chocolate to the roasted peaches and raspberry sauce.
For the peaches
4 peaches, halved and pitted
1 cup finely chopped almonds
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. In a small bowl, combine the almonds, sugar, water, and almond extract. With a melon ball cutter or spoon, scoop out enough pulp from the center of each peach to create a 1-inch deep cavity.
3. Arrange the peaches, cut-side-up, in an ovenproof baking dish; fill each with the almond mixture. Cover the pan with foil.
4. Bake the peaches for about 30 minutes, or until tender when pierced with the tip of a sharp knife. Let cool.
For the raspberry sauce
2 pints fresh raspberries
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 (1.4 ounce) milk chocolate toffee bar, such as Heath, finely chopped
Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, for serving
1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the raspberries, sugar, and lemon juice. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 8 minutes, or until the berries break down and release their juices. Bring to a boil; cook for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the mixture thickens.
2. Pour the mixture through a fine-mesh strainer over a heatproof bowl, pressing down with the back of a spoon to extract the fruit and juices. Let cool (can be refrigerated in a covered container for 3 to 5 days).
3. To serve, put 2 peach halves into a shallow bowl. Spoon the raspberry sauce on top; sprinkle with the chopped toffee bar. Top with whipped cream or ice cream.
HONEY-ROASTED PEARS WITH CASHEL BLUE AND PINE NUTS
Serves 2
2 ripe pears (Bosc, Anjou, or Concorde)
1/4 cup honey
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of kosher salt
2 ounces Cashel Blue cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup pine nuts
1. Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Line a baking pan with parchment paper.
2. Cut the pears in half; remove the core. Cut a thin slice off the bottom of each pear half (to keep them upright).
3. In a small bowl, combine the honey, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt. Place pears, cut-side-up, on the prepared pan. Spoon half the honey mixture evenly over the pears.
4. Bake the pears for about 25 minutes, or until tender when pierced with the tip of a sharp knife.
5. To serve, put 2 pear halves into a shallow bowl. Drizzle with the reserved honey mixture. Sprinkle with the blue cheese and pine nuts.
Margaret Johnson’s “Recipes” page also includes “Ireland Hopping: Adventures in Food, Drink, and Travel.” To order one of her signed cookbooks, visit irishcook.com.
