peachy keen

What better time of year is there to go to the Farmer's Market than summer? Spring is up there in the ranks, but you really can't beat August with it's ugly heirloom tomatoes, fresh summer squash, or corn picked right from the stalk.  I had my summer's bounty feast just the other day, and was able to utilize a LITTLE bit of everything. As an aside: when riding your racing bike to the farmer's market, do not put a billion pounds worth of food in your backpack because it WILL throw off your balance. Just sayin'.

Among other things, I picked up a few juicy peaches - so perfect you could smell them from yards away! I was going back and forth between yellow and white peaches, and today opted for the yellow. But what to do with these peaches? Just eat 'em? Make white sangria with them? Use them in a savory dish maybe with duck? Nope, today I decided to test my hand yet again with baking and pastries - it was dessert time!  I picked up some blackberries and cycled on back to the abode.  After consulting with my trusty Flavor Bible, I settled on making peach, blackberry, and walnut galettes.  And then I remembered all the Blis maple syrup I had in the fridge - of course, I had to accompany the galettes a walnut-maple syrup ice cream.  Seriously, Blis maple syrup is epic. And not to toot my own horn, but I made a perfect creme anglaise - I had to pat myself on the back for that!

The resulting combination was perfectly summery and delicious. For the galettes, if it comes down to it, you can use pre-made pie crust from the store. 

Summer Fruit Galettes with Blis Maple Syrup Ice Cream

Makes 6

Pate Brisee:

2 1/2 c all-purpose flour

1 t salt

2 sticks unsalted butter, cold, cut into small cubes

1/4 c ice water, plus more if necessary

Note: Make sure all of your items are COLD, and be sure to work quickly! In a food processor, combine the flour and salt, pulsing to combine.  Add the butter, pulsing until the mixture looks like coarse bread crumbs.  With the machine running, slowly add the ice water until the dough comes together - ensure that it doesn't get wet or sticky.  This should take no longer than 30 seconds.  Test for consistency by pinching a small amount of the dough between your fingers - if it crumbles, add a bit more water.

Turn out the dough on a clean surface an divide it in half - place each half on a piece of plastic wrap, flatten slightly, and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

 

For the galette filling:

1/2 c walnuts
2 T flour
2 T & 1 t sugar
4 yellow peaches, thinly sliced (make sure they are a bit firm and not overly ripe!)
2 T light brown sugar
1 T & 1 t cornstarch

1 pint blackberries
Heavy cream, for brushing
Turbinado sugar
Apricot jam, for brushing

Preheat the oven to 400F.  In a food processor, pulse together the walnuts, flour, and 2 T of sugar until it's the consistency of coarse sand.  In one bowl, toss the peaches with 1 T cornstarch and the brown sugar.  In another bowl, toss the blackberries with 1 t cornstarch and the remaining teaspoon of sugar.  Allow both to sit for at least 10 minutes.  Meanwhile, roll out the dough into six ~6 inch rounds.  Place about 2 tablespoons of the walnut mixture in the center of each circle, leaving about an inch and a half around the edges.  Drain the fruit when ready to ensure that the pastry dough doesn't get soggy.  Arrange the peaches neatly in each pastry circle, and top with a few blackberries.  Fold up and pinch the edges to form galettes. Brush each galette with cream and sprinkle evenly with the turbinado sugar.  Place on a baking sheet with parchment paper and bake for approximately 30-40 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.  Cool slightly on a wire rack.  Before serving, warm the apricot jam up and brush the borders of each galette.  If you make these ahead of time, they can be reheated in the oven for a few minutes. 

Blis-Maple Syrup Ice Cream
Adapted from David Lebovitz's The Perfect Scoop
makes ~1 quart

For ice cream:
1.5 cups heavy cream
5 egg yolks
1.5 c whole milk
2 T sugar
3/4 c Blis B Grade maple syrup
1/8 t salt
1/4 t vanilla extract
1/2 c & 1 T dark amber maple syrup
1.5 c toasted walnuts, coarsely chopped
Pinch of salt
 

Place cream in a bowl with a fine mesh sieve on top - this is in case your creme anglaise doesn't work out too well!  Next, in a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks until light and fluffy. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat, combine the milk and sugar, bringing it to a light simmer.  While whisking (quickly!), slowly pour a stream of heated milk into the egg yolks to temper them.  Once they are combined, return the mixture to the saucepan and heat it on the stove over medium-low heat. Stir this mixture constantly, scraping the sides and the bottom so nothing burns.  Slowly bring the mixture to a boil until it coats the back of a wooden spoon, about one minute. (When running your finger through the mixture, it should leave a trail) Immediately remove from heat and pour through the strainer into the reserved cream.  Stir to cool the mixture, and mix in the maple syrup, salt, and vanilla extract. 

Chill the mixture per your ice cream machines instructions.  Or if you're me and fail to realize that you in fact do NOT have an ice cream machine...cross your fingers.  Actually, just place the mixture in a chilled stainless steel bowl, and set it inside ANOTHER stainless steel bowl filled with ice and rock salt.  You'll just have to come back every half hour or so and give it a quick stir-around.  The resulting ice cream won't be as creamy as one with a machine, but ain't no thang. The upside to this - you can taste the ice cream quite often while it's freezing! Make the walnut-maple syrup concoction while waiting.
 

In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, cook the maple syrup until it comes to a full boil.  Stir in the walnuts, returning to a full boil.  Remove the mixture from heat and set aside to cool completely. At the last minute, fold in the walnut mixture into the ice cream.

 

FINALLY! Serve your warm galettes with a scoop of this ice cream.  Try to resist NOT eating the entire remaining amount of ice cream! The galettes turned out wonderfully - the peaches and blackberries were just sweet enough, while the crust had a great crunchy, toasty flavor to it.  The maple ice cream itself was a thing in itself - using the best maple syrup you can find really is a game changer with this.