Honey Roasted Peaches And A Sorbet

Posted on June 19, 2014 by Anjana @ At The Corner Of Happy & Harried

I’ve been on a frozen dessert roll this summer. I’ve made mango kulfis, blackberry swirled no-churn vanilla ice cream and strawberry popsicles so far. Nothing says summer quite like a cool dessert and no fruit better describes summer here in the South than peaches.

The fuzzy yellow-red skin holds the most delicious, juicy flesh within. Peaches, nectarines, plums and most other stone fruit hold such a depth of flavor one normally would not come across in say, an apple or orange. Maybe it has something to do with the sunshine and weather in general this time of year.

I promised you guys some recipes when we went peach picking (you can see a few pics here). We devoured probably a couple of pounds on the one-hour drive home; some very sweet and soft, others still tart and firm. I love them any which way. After allowing a few of the big, perfectly rounded ones to ripen on the counter, I started my hunt for recipes. I definitely wanted to try oven roasting them with a hint of sugar or honey.

The roasting really intensifies the peach flavor, which is good if you are a peach fan. For others especially kids, it is mostly an acquired taste. Just saying.

HONEY ROASTED PEACHES

You will need:

Peaches – 8-10, medium-sized
Honey (or brown sugar) – a few tablespoons (use as needed, depending on number of peaches)
Mint leaves – a few, optional

How to:

Pre-heat the oven to 400 deg.F
Cut the peaches in half and discard the pits. It might be easy for some fruit. If the pits are very stubborn, just slice the flesh as best as you can.
Brush honey all over the fruit and arrange them cut side down on a large baking pan. Sprinkle torn mint leaves on top.
Bake for 20-30 minutes or till fruit is soft and skins are wrinkly.
Cool the fruit for a while and enjoy with some ice cream or whipped cream or use them in other peach desserts.

I flipped them over so you can see how soft they become once roasted.

I almost decided to make ice cream with these, then went in a slightly low-fat direction and zeroed in on peach sorbet. To make ice cream, you can refer to my homemade vanilla ice cream recipe. Just before the last freeze cycle, gently mix in some of the mashed roasted peaches. Sorbet is easier. All it takes is a light sugar syrup and pureed fruit.

PEACH SORBET

You will need:

Peach puree – 2 – 2 1/2 cups (from 8-10 medium peaches)
Water – 1/2 cup
Sugar – 1/4 cup (or more, depending on how sweet the peaches are and also if you’ve previously roasted them like I did)
Lemon juice – if needed

How to:

To make a light syrup, heat water and sugar in a saucepan till sugar dissolves completely. Remove from heat and cool.
Puree the peaches in a blender. If you are using honey roasted peaches, it should be very easy to get their skins off. If you are using fresh peaches, blanch them in hot water for a minute and try removing the skins.
Blend the puree and sugar syrup together. Taste and add more sugar if it seems too tart or some lemon juice if it is too sweet.
Churn in an ice cream maker and freeze the sorbet mixture. If you don’t have an ice cream maker, freeze the mixture for a couple of hours, blend it again and return to freezer. To make the initial freezing and blending easier, you can use an ice tray. It is much quicker.
Rest on the counter top for 5 minutes before serving to make it easier to scoop.