Poached White Peaches with Orange Custard

We were in the tiniest village near Lake Orta in northern Italy, cooking dinner for some new friends. I had all the basics – fruit, wine, butter, eggs, flour, sugar, milk and cream – but no measuring equipment. After so many years of baking, I finally had that lightbulb moment, remembering I was armed with technique and, two hours later, I emerged proud, with silken poached peaches, a luscious pouring custard and puff pastry.

SERVES 4

INGREDIENTS

¼ quantity Rough Puff Pastry

POACHED PEACHES

125 ml (4 fl oz/½ cup) dry white wine

125 ml (4 fl oz/½ cup) water

110 g (3¾ oz/½ cup) sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste OR vanilla essence

2 white OR yellow peaches (not a clingstone variety)

ORANGE CUSTARD

250 ml (9 fl oz/1 cup) thickened (whipping) cream

250 ml (9 fl oz/1 cup) milk

1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest

4 egg yolks

40 g (1½ oz) caster (superfine) sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract OR vanilla essence

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°C) fan-forced. Have two identical baking trays on standby; line one with baking paper.

To bake the rough puff, on a lightly floured work surface, roll out the pastry into a 4 mm (³/₁₆ inch) thick rectangle. Place it on the lined tray, cover it with another sheet of baking paper, then pop the other tray on top. Bake for 30–40 minutes until a deep golden brown. Cool completely, before using a serrated knife to cut four pieces of puff in any shape you like. To cut the puff pastry, use a large sharp knife and cut in a sliding not pressing action, to avoid shattering the delicate layers of pastry. Place the puff in an airtight container, and set aside.

To poach the peaches, combine the wine, water, sugar and vanilla in a small saucepan over high heat. Bring to the boil, then lower in the peaches using a spoon. Cover and reduce to a simmer. Continue simmering for 5–10 minutes (depending on how big your peaches are) until the peaches are tender. Remove from the heat. When they are cool enough to handle, lift them out with a slotted spoon, then peel, halve and remove the stones. Chill the peach halves in the refrigerator until needed.

To make the orange custard, microwave the cream, milk and orange zest in a medium heatproof bowl for 3 minutes on the highest setting. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the yolks, sugar and vanilla until pale and thick, then pour into the hot cream-and-milk mixture. Whisk well, then microwave in 90-second bursts, repeating this until the custard thickens enough to easily coat the back of a wooden spoon without running off immediately. see here for tips on making a pouring custard. Chill before serving.

To serve, place a peach half in each bowl. Flood around the peaches with the custard, then garnish with a piece of puff.