Tuesday 30 December 2014

Easy No Fuss Fresh Peach Ice



The approach of Christmas and New Year flags peach season at our house!

We have a glorious Anzac Peach tree in the backyard which - with a little TLC throughout the year - rewards us with buckets and buckets of sweet, juicy, yellow fleshed peaches.

Peaches are one of my favourite fruits. I have fond childhood memories of summers long past sucking the warm sticky juice from glorious peaches picked fresh from the tree by my late Grandfather - a most wonderful gardener!

Peach season signals a flurry of activity in my kitchen - those peaches are not to be wasted! I make jams and sometimes chutneys, freeze slices and halves poached in light syrup, and make endless desserts that include fresh fruit salads, peach pies, tarts, upside down cakes and my favourite - roast peaches drizzled with a mixture of butter and brown sugar that forms a toffee sauce in the pan.

A favourite with our grandsons, this easy Peach Ice recipe evolved from the Cantalope Ice recipe featured in 'The Australian Women's Weekly New Cookbook' edited by Ellen Sinclair and published way back in 1978.

Not only is this Peach Ice a refreshing and tasty sweet - but you will be amazed at how easy and no fuss it is make! The peaches do not need to be peeled. That's right - no messy, time consuming peeling is involved, and a food processor or stick blender will make blitzing the fresh peaches to a pulp a breeze!

Serve the ice with fresh sliced peaches mascerated in a little sugar to draw out the juices, together with a generous dollop of thick cream. Yum!

Three grandsons love the Peach Ice served in a cone! It melts quickly - just as well it is eaten even quicker!

For Adults only: Just between you and me a sensational adult version can be made mascerating the peaches in a little Grand Marnier or Cointreau! Shhh, don't tell!




Easy No Fuss Fresh Peach Ice


1 kilo fresh ripe yellow peaches (7 or 8 good sized peaches)
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

Method


Boil the sugar and water in a saucepan until a light syrup forms - about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile wash the peaches and trim any bruised areas. Leaving the skin on slice the peaches into chunks, removing the stone and any stem.

Place half of the chunks of peach and half of the orange juice in the food processor or blitzing jug of the stick blender. Puree. Pour into a large bowl. Repeat with the remaining peach chunks and orange juice.

Add the hot syrup to the bowl of puree and stir thoroughly.




Pour the puree mixture into a sterilized 2 litre container. Top with the lid and place into the freezer. There is no need to stir the ice mixture during the freezing process - I meant it when I said it was no fuss and easy!





Enjoy!

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year! May 2015 be a wonderful year!

Cheers!

Marian






Thursday 4 December 2014

In My Kitchen ... in December

I can't believe that this is the last In My Kitchen post for 2014! This fabulous series, hosted by Celia at Fig Jam and Lime Cordial, is a fascinating sneak peak into the kitchens of bloggers from around the world. Thank you, Celia, for the opportunity to particpate!


In My Kitchen ... in December 


Christmas planning is in full swing! That means I'm planning to make this Christmas recipe - my all time favourite! Perfect for any Christmas party it's my spectacular Meringue and Red Fruit Salad Christmas Wreath. Loaded with the gorgeous red fruits of our Aussie summer season - cherries, watermelon, strawberries, blueberries, red seedless grapes and redcurrants soaked in a luscious boozy syrup it takes pavlova to wonderful new heights!




The Christmas Pudding has been made! This year I've used Stephanie Alexander's recipe passed on to her from her grandmother, Emily Bell. You will find the recipe in her 'go to' book The Cook's Companion - one of my most used cookbooks. It's the first pudding I've cooked using suet - and I'm thrilled with the result!




The family gathered to stir the Christmas pudding prior to cooking. Everyone made a wish - and we stirred and made wishes for those who couldn't attend. I hope they like what we wished for them!!!




We've had another birthday! This time I revisited a favourite cookbook I hadn't visited for ages - The Gretta Anna Recipes (orange cover) published in 1978. I made - for the first time - the Chocolate Torte Los Angeles. Wow! Where has that recipe been all my life! It was marked 10/10 by everyone - adults and children alike. Already I have requests from several family members to make it for their birthdays! If you have the book - this recipe is a winner!




I just love being able to use produce fresh from the garden and these little beauties are the first tomatoes of the season. This summer I'm trying straw bale gardening for the first time. Has anyone else tried this?




This Father Christmas plate has been with us for over 30 years now. It has a couple of 'love bumps' along the edges but filled with Christmas truffles and chocolates no-one notices - and I'm not retiring it any time soon!




Father Christmas bought me an early Christmas present - this SOLIDTEKNICS AUSfonte Sauteuse pan, manufactured right here in Adelaide. Recently recommended by my friend Liz of Bizzy Lizzy's Good Things it is amazing! I have never cooked better steak in my life! Thanks for the recommendation, Liz!




Finally, wherever you are, I wish you and yours the most wonderful Christmas and New Year. May health, happiness, peace and gratitude fill your hearts throughout the coming year.





Merry Christmas!

Cheers!

Marian




 photo SSBADGE_zps2de55d46.gif