Showing posts with label Peaches. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Peaches. Show all posts

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Peach Caprese Salad

Until recently I thought caprese only referred to those lovely salads of tomato, basil and mozzarella.  When in fact caprese refers to something that comes from the style of the island of Capri, off the coast near Naples, Italy.   Most commonly used in the United States to refer to the Caprese Salad.  During the summer months when tomatoes are beautiful and plentiful, we enjoy Caprese Salad several times a week.  A few weeks ago, our CSA basket included some of the most delicious Missouri peaches I've ever eaten.  Having bookmarked this recipe for a Peach Caprese Salad, I decided to see how it stacked up to the tomato version we enjoy so often.  This beautifully color salad is a wonderful combination of tang from the vinegar and sweetness from the honey. 




Georgia Caprese Salad with Lime Vinaigrette
Adapted slightly from Southern My Way by Gena Knox – serves 4

Vinaigrette:
Juice and zest of 1 lime
1 tablespoon champagne or white wine vinegar
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon water
½ teaspoon salt

Salad:
4 ounces tiny water-packed mozzarella cheese balls
4 ripe peaches (southern if you can find them), unpeeled, each cut into eight wedges
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
6 tablespoons fresh basil leaves, torn into pieces
3 tablespoons fresh mint leaves, torn into pieces

Prepare the vinaigrette by combing the ingredients in a glass jar with a screw top lid. Shake well to combine and set aside. Cut cheese into 1-inch pieces (or leave whole if they are small balls) and gently toss with the peaches. Add the vinaigrette and toss again gently. Add a little freshly ground black pepper and the basil and mint pieces. Serve right away.

I am linking this to On The Menu Monday, Tasty Tuesday, Miz Helen's Full Plate Thursday and Foodie Friday.

Thursday, September 3, 2009

Peach Crumble

My husband enjoyed the Fresh Peach Muffins but commented I thought you were going to make a cobbler or crisp. The old standby's are his favorites. I had a few peaches remaining from our trip to the orchard, so Tim this crumble is for you!!!

I checked the refrigerator and realized I didn't have any lemons. I do have the bottled lemon juice but don't like to use it in baked goods. I see this bottle of limoncello we purchased after enjoying limoncello on a cruise. Why is it the limoncello we had on the cruise was much tastier than the bottled variety. Maybe it was the ocean air or maybe the bottle of wine we had with dinner?? Anyway, I decided to try limoncello in this recipe as a substution for lemon juice.



Peach Crumble

4 ripe peaches, pitted and sliced
3 tablespoons of Limoncello
Cinnamon
Nutmeg
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into thin pieces
1/2 cup quick-cooking oats

Preheat the oven to 375F.

Arrange the peach slices in a buttered shallow baking dish. Sprinkle with the limoncello, cinnamon and nutmeg.

In a small bowl, combine the flour and brown sugar. With your fingers, blend the butter into the flour-sugar mixture until it resembles coarse meal. Stir in the oats and sprinkle the mixture on top of the sliced peaches. Bake until the peaches are soft and the topping is brown, about 25 minutes.

Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream!

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Fresh Peach Muffins

On our way home from our weekend trip to Kansas City, we stopped at Kimmel Orchards. We enjoyed a wine tasting of their fruit and white wines, tasted their yummy apple cider donuts and purchased some beautiful white peaches. I can't wait to go back during apple season.

A juicy, fresh peach is such a sign of summer and I love eating them. My husband, however, prefers them in desserts. What dessert do you think of when you think of peaches? For me, it's cobblers or crisps. I wanted to try something besides a cobbler, crisp or pie.

I found the baking blog, Sweet Melissa Sunday's, their recipe for this week is Fresh Peach Muffins. They have the maximum number of bakers for their group. Darn! I thought the recipe looked so yummy and since I had fresh peaches, I decided to bake it anyway.



My notes for this recipe:

I blanched the peaches in boiling water for one minute and then transferred them to cold water to stop the cooking. The skin peeled off easily.

The recipe calls for 1 cup of diced peaches, a large peach yielded one cup. I didn't have orange zest, so I substituted lime zest.

These muffins are WONDERFUL. They have a very subtle peach flavor. I do think the cinnamon topping makes the muffins extra tasty.