The Golden Queens…Peaches that is!
Sensuous juicy peach recipe..
Finding the perfect peach.
Last week on my way home from my weekly walk with my dear friends and fellow Yogis i made my regular stop at the Waterford Fruit market which is an eclectic and very busy market. They often have great deals on season fruit and veg and a whole range of other grocery items which sit my diet and lifestyle. And last week was no exception…with buckets of peaches for sale for only $3.00..usually I am quite suspicious of those cheap buckets as I always think that they plonk the beautiful pieces on top and fill it with the rubbish pieces underneath. But last week for some reason they had the most gorgeous peaches on display. Both golden and white.
My love for golden queen peaches began when I was a young traveller working in fruit orchards of Western NSW and South Australia with my boyfriend ….saving up to pay for a trip to Asia ..first stop Bali.
One day I was up in the top of a large peach tree picking the fruit, placing it gently in the bucket. It was a glorious Spring day with clear blue sky and a lovely breeze blowing through my hair. As I was revelling in the aroma of the fruit and the perfection of the day I spotted it…the perfect peach.
Now usually I am not a big fruit eater and was not then either. But on that day, the sight of that perfect peach, smooth, golden and twice the size of a cricket ball just hanging there right on top of the tree, I couldn’t resist….I reached up and plucked it from its’ branch and inhaled its perfume. AAAAhhhh!! I leant back into the high branch that was supporting me and sunk my feet into it….
I’m here to tell you it was defining moment in my expectations of what good fruit should be like. The golden nectar dribbled down my chin and neck…it really was a divine experience…feeling that generosity, abundance and perfection of nature, I felt a sense of connection with the whole that I hadn’t ever before been aware of. I really didn't want it to end.
Now for the Perfect Peach recipe.
So now with that peach in mind I arrived home and eagerly bit into one of the peaches I had bought …WOW it was really delicious, juicy and sweet and not at all floury. So I thought about stewing them…but they were much to nice for stewing…what if they went squishy.
So I ended up baking them in a coconut sugar ginger and cinnamon caramel glaze.
It was really almost a bit salty. I served them for dessert that night with fresh natural Greek Yoghurt that tasted like cheesecake…probably had a bit of sugar in it but it worked well and the peaches were a big hit. Also had them for breakfast the next day
So here is the recipe.
Ingredients:
1 kg peaches (Golden queens)
Tablespoon coconut sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger powder
Tablespoon good quality butter
Instructions:
Caramel glaze
Melt butter in pan and add coconut sugar and spices…mix with wooden spoon until it is a nice brown smooth consistency. Remove from heat
Grease base of large flat bottomed baking dish with butter
Wash and halve peaches
Glaze each peach half with the caramel and place them face down in the pan
then top each peach with a little dob of butter and sprinkle with a little more sugar
Place in preheated oven of 250* F and cook for about an hour .
Serve with Marscapone cream or fresh yoghurt , or enjoy for breakfast with coconut cream and roasted pumpkin seeds.