Pêches à la Condé

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •3-quart (3-litre) saucepan
• •Slotted spoon or small wire skimmer
• •Fine skewer or cake tester
• •11-inch (28-cm) round serving platter
• •Flexible spatula or large spoon, lightly buttered for Method 1
• •Small deep saucepan and frying thermometer for Method 2

Instructions

1. 1

   Choose one method

   Choose one presentation, not both. For the rice-border presentation, reach for Apricots à la Condé (No. 2551) and prepare its complete formula at a four-serving scale, holding back the apricots. For the Génoise crown and rice-croquette presentation, reach for Apricots à la Condé (2nd method) (No. 2552) and do the same. Keep each referenced preparation whole and follow its own entry; this recipe changes only the fruit and the home-scale equipment.

2. 2

   Peel the peaches

   Cut a shallow cross through the skin at the base of each peach. Lower the peaches into a saucepan of boiling water for 20 seconds, then move them into the ice water. Slip off the skins, halve the fruit cleanly along its seam, and remove the stones without pressing the flesh. If a skin resists, return that peach to the water for 10 seconds; scraping at it with a knife bruises the surface the syrup should leave smooth.

   Freestone peaches separate cleanly and are worth seeking here. With clingstone fruit, loosen the pit with the tip of a small spoon instead of twisting the halves until they tear.
3. 3

   Poach at a tremble

   Bring the poaching syrup supplied by Apricots à la Condé (No. 2551), or by Apricots à la Condé (2nd method) (No. 2552), to the faintest simmer. Lay in the peach halves in one layer and poach for 3 to 7 minutes, turning once, until a fine skewer enters the thickest part with slight resistance. Lift each half as it reaches that point; they need not finish together. If the syrup boils and the fruit's edges begin to feather, pull the pan off the heat, add 2 tablespoons (30 ml / 30 g) of the ice water, and lift the peaches immediately. Ça se rattrape. Their own heat will finish the centres.

4. 4

   Drain and finish sauce

   Set the peach halves in a single layer on a rack or shallow tray and let them drain without stacking. For Method 1, bring the Kirsch-flavoured apricot syrup from Apricots à la Condé (No. 2551) to the coating consistency its entry specifies. For Method 2, finish the Kirsch-flavoured apricot sauce from Apricots à la Condé (2nd method) (No. 2552) as directed and reserve it separately. If either finish tightens before serving, warm it gently and loosen it with a teaspoon of cooled peach-poaching syrup; if it runs watery, reduce it before the Kirsch goes in.

5. 5

   Shape Method One

   Complete Apricots à la Condé (No. 2551) exactly as directed, replacing each poached apricot half with a drained peach half. Shape the finished vanilla sweet rice into an even border on a round dish with a lightly buttered spoon or flexible spatula; the special border mould is useful, not necessary. Arrange the peach halves on the rice, decorate with the prescribed candied fruit, and coat evenly with the Kirsch-flavoured apricot syrup. A thin glaze should cling and gleam, not collect in a moat.

6. 6

   Shape Method Two

   For the alternative, complete Apricots à la Condé (2nd method) (No. 2552) exactly as directed, substituting one drained peach half for each poached apricot half. Set the crown of small Génoise roundels around the dish, place a peach half on each with its convex side underneath, and put half a sugared cherry in every hollow. Build the prescribed pyramid of apricot-shaped rice croquettes in the centre and serve the Kirsch-flavoured apricot sauce separately. The Génoise and croquettes are the dish in this method, not decoration to be omitted.

7. 7

   Bring it out

   Let Method 1 settle for 10 minutes so the rice border holds cleanly when served. Bring Method 2 to the table as soon as its freshly fried croquettes are arranged, with the sauce alongside. Give each person two peach halves and a generous share of rice or croquettes. Cooking well is not cooking fancy, even when the platter knows how to make an entrance. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Buy peaches by touch and scent. They should yield only slightly beside the stem and smell plainly of peach before cutting; fully soft fruit is for eating over the sink, not for poaching into a formal crown.
• •Out of season, well-drained canned peach halves can carry Method 1. Do not poach them again; warm them briefly in the syrup and drain them well. They will taste softer and less perfumed. Method 2 deserves fresh fruit because every half must perch neatly on its Génoise.
• •Kirsch is a dry cherry eau-de-vie, not sweet cherry liqueur. Use the amount specified by the selected reference and do not boil the finished sauce after adding it, or its clean cherry aroma disappears.
• •The time fields allow for one cook making the peach conversion and assembling the selected Condé preparation. Method 1 fits comfortably into one evening; for Method 2, prepare the Génoise and shaped rice croquettes ahead so the final work remains calm.

Advance Preparation

• •The vanilla rice and apricot syrup for Apricots à la Condé (No. 2551) may be prepared according to that entry earlier in the day. Shape the border once the rice is cool enough to hold but still pliable.
• •The Génoise and uncooked rice croquettes for Apricots à la Condé (2nd method) (No. 2552) may be prepared a day ahead as that entry permits. Fry the croquettes close to serving so their crust remains crisp.
• •Poach the peaches up to 4 hours ahead. Cool the fruit and syrup separately, then cover and chill them; keeping warm peaches submerged would continue cooking them. Drain thoroughly before assembly.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 320g)