In Queen Victoria’s time, no meal was considered complete without a fresh peach served on a fancy cotton napkin. While we have shed the formality the sentiment rings true when the furry orbs are at their ripest—no August meal is complete without a peach. And we think Vicki would swoon for the classic Peach Melba crafted for us by Cam Smith and Dana Ewart of Penticton’s Joy Road Catering. Our other fruit experts show that the peach is capable of starring in every course, right down to the pre-dinner cocktail.

Hot Fuzz
{by Graham Warner, mixologist, Raw Bar, Calgary}

1/2 fresh peach
1/2 fresh red pepper (seeded)
1 1/2 oz Appleton white Jamaican rum
1/2 lime, pressed
1/2 oz. honey syrup
Splash ginger beer
Peach peel, red pepper for garnish

Muddle peach and red pepper in base of mixing glass. Add remaining ingredients except the ginger beer and shake briefly. Transfer to 2-oz collins glass and top with ginger beer. Garnish with peach peel and a slice of red pepper.

Grilled Stuffed Peaches with Couscous and Feta
{by Ben Kramer, head chef, Dandelion Eatery, Winnipeg}

1 1/2 cups water
1/4 tsp salt
Scant pinch crushed chilies
1 cup whole wheat couscous
4 large peaches, cut in half with pits removed
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp real maple syrup
6 oz crumbled feta
1/4 cup currents
2 tbsp minced chives
2 tbsp fresh mint

Bring water to a boil in a saucepan. Remove from heat and add salt, crushed chilies and couscous.
Cover and let rest 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, brush peaches with the balsamic vinegar and maple syrup. Grill 2-3 minutes or until peaches have nice grill marks. Do not burn or overcook. Peaches should remain firm.

Once the couscous is rested, stir in currents, feta cheese, mint and chives. Fill each peach half with couscous mixture. If needed, scoop out some of the flesh with a spoon to make room for the filling. Serve with your favourite salad.

Peach Melba
{by Cameron Smith and Dana Ewart, Joy Road Catering, Penticton}
Story goes...Classic dessert, invented in 1892-93 by chef Auguste Escoffier at the Savoy hotel in London to honour Australian soprano Nellie Melba. He had heard her perform and it inspired him to create the dessert just for her. Consists of vanilla ice cream, peeled peaches and raspberry sauce. The goal was to not hurt her precious vocal chords with the super cold ice cream by warming it a little with peaches and sauce.

Vanilla Ice Cream Ingredients
Ingredients
2 cups milk
1 vanilla bean
8 egg yolks
2/3 cups sugar
1 cup 35% cream

Put the milk, cream, and split vanilla bean into a sauce pan. Scald the dairy, remove from the heat, and let the vanilla infuse for 10 mins. In a bowl whisk together the yolks and sugar until thick and light. 3-4 mins. then slowly stir in the liquid. Return the custard to the pan and heat gently, stirring Constantly until the custard thickens slightly. When finished a finger drawn across the back of the spoon or spatula will leave a clear trail. Do not over cook or boil or the custard will be scrambled. Once finished, strain the custard into a bowl and chill. Freeze in an ice cream machine. Serves approximately 6.

Raspberry Sauce Ingredients
1.5 cups ripe beautiful raspberries
1/3 cup sugar

Crush raspberries and add sugar. Let stand until sugar dissolves. Force through a sieve. Discard seeds.

On Peaches
My favourite are the Okanagan organic white peaches. Donut peaches are really interesting too. Red haven would be my second choice. We get our incredible peaches from our friend Michael Welsh. He has a stand at the Penticton and Naramata farmers’ markets. He is known around here as the “tree doctor and fruit guy.” Traditionally the peaches are poached for this recipe- but I find if you buy really ripe perfect peaches, you can just peel the skins off and they are better not cooked. To assemble- place ice cream in a parfait dish. Ontop goes peeled peach halves, then raspberry sauce. Or layers can be lovely as well! However you choose to make it look- It’s going to taste sublime. Enjoy.

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