Wednesday, September 9, 2020

Peaches and Cream with a French-Italian Twist #Recipe by Leslie Karst

 

No fruit tops fresh, ripe, summer peaches and nectarines in my book, so before the end of the season is upon us, I thought I’d provide a recipe for the classic “Peaches and Cream”—but with a French-Italian twist, since it employs rosé wine and mascarpone cheese. 

 


This is the perfect dinner party dessert, as it can be prepared up to the plating stage in advance, and as it’s flavorful enough to hold its own against a bold dinner, yet light enough not to elicit groans from your already-full-to-the-brim guests. And as a plus, you can serve the rest of the bottle of rosé along with the dessert! (If you can’t locate mascarpone cheese, simply substitute cream cheese and add an extra teaspoon of sugar.)


Peaches and Cream with a French-Italian Twist

(serves 4)


Ingredients


3 ripe peaches or nectarines

½ cup dry rosé wine

2 sprigs rosemary (about 2 teaspoons, finely chopped)

8 oz. mascarpone cheese

2 teaspoons white sugar


stroopwafel (butter waffle) or similar cookies (for garnish)

flake or coarse grain salt (for garnish)

fresh-ground black pepper (for garnish)

4 more rosemary sprigs (for garnish)

 



Directions


Pit and slice the peaches and place in a bowl. 

 


Finely chop the rosemary.



Add the rosemary and rosé wine to the peaches, and stir carefully (so as to not break up the slices). Cover and refrigerate until ready to plate up for service. 

 




Place mascarpone cheese in a bowl, add the sugar, and mix well. Cover and refrigerate until service.




Spoon one quarter each of the mascarpone mixture onto the middle of four plates, and mash down slightly with a spoon.



Arrange the peaches in a spiral around the mascarpone, spooning the juice left in the bowl over them. Then sprinkle lightly with flake or coarse-grain salt, fresh-cracked black pepper, and some crushed cookies. Garnish with whole cookies and a sprig of rosemary.



 🍷 🍊 🍶


The daughter of a law professor and a potter, Leslie Karst learned early, during family dinner conversations, the value of both careful analysis and the arts—ideal ingredients for a mystery story. Putting this early education to good use, she now writes the Sally Solari Mysteries, a culinary series set in Santa Cruz, California. An ex-lawyer like her sleuth, Leslie also has degrees in English literature and the culinary arts. She and her wife and their Jack Russell mix split their time between Santa Cruz and Hilo, Hawai‘i.

 




Leslie’s website
Leslie also blogs with Chicks on the Case
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Leslie on Instagram


Praise for Leslie's most recent Sally Solari mystery, MURDER FROM SCRATCH:
“Karst seasons her writing with an accurate insider’s view of restaurant operation, as well as a tenderness in the way she treats family, death and Sally’s reactions to Evelyn’s blindness.”

Ellery Queen Magazine


All four Sally Solari Mysteries are available through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Bookshop.

 



5 comments:

  1. Hmm Salt, pepper, and rosemary. My mouth brain (or is it brain mouth?) wonders about this.
    But my grandmother always sprinkled her melon with salt, so why not?

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    Replies
    1. Yes, the salt, pepper, and rosemary are wonderful with the sweet peaches and rich cream! And it's a fun adventure for the taste buds!

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  2. Thank you. I wait all year for fresh peaches. This recipe will surely make it to the top of the rotation.

    ReplyDelete