POACHED APRICOTS WITH PISTACHIO AND AMARETTO MASCARPONE

INGREDIENTS:

Yield: 4 servings

Total time: About 35 minutes

For the apricots:

Scant ½ cup Sauternes ½ lime

¼ tsp vanilla bean paste (or ½ tsp pure vanilla extract)

⅓ cup granulated sugar or caster sugar

6 medium ripe apricots (about 280g), halved and pitted

For the pistachio and amaretto mascarpone:

¾ cup raw unsalted pistachios, toasted and finely chopped

80g hard amaretti cookies, such as Lazzaroni brand, roughly crumbled (you’ll need two 65-gram packages)

1 tbsp granulated sugar or caster sugar

140g mascarpone, at room temperature

½ cup heavy cream (double cream), lightly whipped to soft peaks

1 tsp orange blossom water

1 tsp lime zest

METHOD:

1. Poach the apricots: Add Sauternes, lime half, vanilla, sugar and 3 tbsp water to a saucepan just big enough to hold the apricot halves in one layer. Place the pan over high heat and cook until the sugar has melted and the liquid boils.

2. Remove the pan from the heat and place the apricots in the hot liquid, cut sides down. Leave them to poach in the residual heat until they are soft but still hold their shape (20 to 40 minutes, depending on how ripe they are) flipping them every 10 minutes. Set the apricots aside to cool slightly. (If not serving immediately, transfer the apricots to a covered container and refrigerate until needed.) Squeeze the lime into the syrup and then discard it; return the saucepan with the syrup to medium-high heat and simmer until reduced to about ¼ cup, 5 to 6 minutes. Set aside at room temperature until needed.

3. Prepare the mascarpone mixture: Combine pistachios, amaretti cookies and sugar. Add three-quarters of this mixture to a bowl with the mascarpone and mix it all together until combined, then fold in the cream.

4. To serve, divide the apricots and the amaretti cream between four bowls. Pour the syrup over the apricots and sprinkle the remaining amaretti and pistachio crumble over the cream. Finish with orange blossom water and lime zest and serve.