Game of stones
Juicy fruit dishes
Peach melba dessert cake
The classic pairing of peaches and raspberries makes a delightfully moist and scrumptious cake. Serve it warm with a dusting of icing sugar and dollop of cream, or cold with a drizzle of orange-flavoured icing.
125g butter, softened
1⁄2 cup white sugar
1⁄4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 orange, finely grated zest
11⁄2 cups plain flour
1⁄2 tsp baking powder
1⁄2 tsp baking soda
150g sour cream (about 1⁄2 cup)
2-3 yellow flesh peaches, stones
and skin removed, cut in eighths 150g raspberries, fresh or frozen
Topping
50g butter, melted
1⁄2 cup white sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 eggs, whisked
Heat oven to 175C and line a 22cm round tin.
Cream butter and sugars together. Beat in eggs one at a time followed by the vanilla and orange zest.
Sift over half the dry ingredients and fold into the mixture. Add sour cream and combine then fold in remaining dry ingredients.
Spoon mixture into prepared tin and spread evenly. Arrange peach slices decoratively over the cake and scatter over the raspberries. Topping: Melt butter and stir in sugar and cinnamon. Leave to cool for several minutes then stir in whisked eggs. Spoon topping over and around the fruit.
Bake 55-60 minutes, testing the middle of the cake for doneness using a skewer. Cool for at least 30 minutes before removing from tin. Serves 8-10
Summer fruit salad with prosecco syrup & citrus cream
Together with kaffir lime and sichuan pepper, prosecco adds a sophisticated twist to this special fruit salad.
1kg mixed stone fruit, stones
removed, cut in halves or wedges 300g mixed fresh berries, halved if large 1⁄2 pomegranate
3 tbsp chopped pistachio nuts
Prosecco syrup
325ml prosecco (or similar sparkling wine) 1⁄2 cup sugar
2 limes, juiced
1 vanilla pod, split
1 star anise
1⁄2 tsp sichuan peppercorns 2 kaffir lime leaves
Citrus cream
1 lime, finely grated zest 1 orange, finely grated zest 1⁄2 cup juice from the lime and orange
3 egg yolks
1⁄4 cup caster sugar 300ml cream, beaten
Make the syrup first. Place all the ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Reduce heat and simmer for about 5 minutes. Cool, then refrigerate.
Make citrus cream by placing lime and orange zests, citrus juice, egg yolks and sugar in a small saucepan. Whisk over a gentle heat for about 5 minutes until mixture thickens. Allow to cool completely then fold in the beaten cream. Refrigerate until needed.
To assemble fruit salad, place stone fruit, berries and pomegranate seeds in a large serving bowl and pour syrup over. Scatter with pistachio nuts and serve with a dollop of citrus cream. Serves 6-8
Nectarine, halloumi & hazelnut salad
A delicious accompaniment to chicken or fish, this salad can be prepped ahead of time and simply thrown together just before serving.
6 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp lemon juice
1 large and 1 small clove garlic,
minced
Zest of 1 lemon
200g block halloumi, cut into cubes 90g ciabatta bread, torn into pieces 1 tsp sumac, plus extra to serve 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp honey
1 tsp dijon mustard
50g hazelnuts, roasted, skins rubbed off
120g baby rocket leaves 1⁄4 cup buckwheat, cooked to packet instructions (can substitute with rice, quinoa etc) 1⁄2 cup each: mint and basil leaves 1⁄2 small red onion, finely sliced 4 ripe but firm nectarines, cut into
thin wedges
In a small bowl combine 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, the large minced garlic clove and the lemon zest. Add the halloumi and mix well to coat the cubes. Leave to marinate for several hours or, even better, overnight.
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a heavy-bottomed frying pan and fry the bread until browned and crunchy. Sprinkle over the sumac, season with sea salt then set aside.
To make the dressing, in a small jar combine the remaining 3 tablespoons lemon juice with the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil, the vinegar, honey, mustard and the minced small garlic clove. Season with salt and pepper and shake to combine.
Finely chop half the hazelnuts and add them to the dressing. Set aside until ready to use.
Roughly chop the remaining hazelnuts.
Heat a heavy-bottomed frying pan, remove the halloumi from the marinade and cook on all sides until golden.
To make the salad, put the rocket leaves on a large serving platter and scatter with the buckwheat, herbs. red onion, halloumi and bread. Add the nectarine and roughly chopped hazelnuts, drizzle over the dressing then serve immediately, with extra sumac if desired. Serves 6 as a side