Baked Peaches with Macadamia Nuts and Apricot Coulis
This is a stunning dessert: luscious warm peaches stuffed with crunchy macadamia nuts, served in apricot sauce scented with allspice. The dish can be prepared a day in advance and reheated in a 250 F oven before serving.
Ingredients
- Apricots - 1 pound, halved and pitted
- Water - 2 cups
- Superfine sugar - 1-1/4 cups
- Ripe peaches - 4 large
- Macadamia nuts - 1/2 cup, coarsely chopped, unsalted
- Allspice berries - 5
- Unsalted Butter - 2 tablespoons, at room temperature
- Rosemary Sprigs - 4
- Raspberries - 12
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 450 F. Combine the apricots, water, and 1 cup of the sugar in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer, uncovered, for 8 minutes; set aside in the poaching liquid.
Blanch the peaches for 2 minutes in boiling water, then plunge them into ice water. Slip off the skins and cut off the top of each peach at the top of the pit. Using a sharp knife, remove the pits.
Heat a saute pan or skillet over medium heat and toast the macadamia nuts with the allspice. Stir constantly until the nuts are golden brown. Discard the allspice and stuff the nuts into the core of each peach.
Use the soft butter to butter a metal baking dish and arrange the peaches in it. Place the apricots around them, using a slotted spoon; discard their poaching liquid. Sprinkle with the remaining sugar and bake 10 to 15 minutes, until softened and browned.
Place a peach on each of four serving plates. Place the baking dish over medium heat and cook to reduce the juices slightly. Puree the apricot mixture in a blender or food processor and push the puree through a fine-meshed sieve.
To serve: Spoon the apricot sauce around the peaches. Garnish each plate with a rosemary sprig and three raspberries.
