The Season of Stone Fruits Part II: The Need for Cheese

The markets are full of this incredible sweetness--the smell of sweet sticky gold, piled high in pyramids of fuzzy sunset-colored globes. I've already talked about my love for peaches in P'cahns (Pecans) and the Season of Stone Fruits, so I won't bore you with what you already know (and probably already knew). A friend of mine has recently returned to the sweet land of Texas (where all of my family lives, so I have a great love of the Texan cuisine as well) and she was telling me a pretty funny story about a peach cobbler gone bad. Now, I know that it seems impossible, at least in my world, to have a bad peach cobbler, but a peach-butter swimming pool coming out of the oven with a dumpling-like bottom and some dough-y floaters doesn't sound like a winner. Good news, you could spoon out the peaches and put that happiness over ice cream; also, with the liquid, I suggested frying it up with some pork chops--right? Problem solved!

Today is full of problem solving, and our next one has to do with the fact that I don't have an oven here in Bella Barcelona. I believe I've already been on a tirade about the basic rights of owning an oven and preparing baked, roasted, broiled goodness as an everyday ritual. There are different realities all over the place, and I actually kind of like the challenge of living well in this new, albeit limited, world. As a result, I am tackling the world of no-bake desserts!!!! First task: No-bake cheesecake. I'll call it Cheesecake Fresquito, or cool, refreshing cheesecake with a delicious peach-mint topping. We're going all out today!

I wanted to find a cheesecake that doesn't taste like a tub of Philadelphia cream cheese, and is fluffy and can still hold up as a shape and go with whatever topping I put on it. To meet these parameters, I used a mixture of cream cheese, whipped queso fresco (ricotta, if you can find it), sugar, and vanilla. The crust is the basic graham cracker crust made with crushed crackers and melted butter, also with a little sugar. Let me know what you think in the comments section--my cake turned out really nice and we're still enjoying it, even after sending a few pieces up to our neighbors!

Let's get rockin'!

Cheesecake Fresquito (No-bake Cheesecake) with Peach-Mint Sauce

Cream cheese

Ricotta cheese

Sugar 

(you can use powdered sugar for the filling if you want to be fancy/a correct baker)

Pure vanilla extract

Graham Crackers, crushed -OR- Digestive crackers, crushed and cinnamon added

A stick of butter

4 Beautiful, just ripe peaches

Mint

Let's get started with the crust. It is really basic, and my favorite pie crust. If you have graham crackers, crush those babies up--I think that one sleeve will do, maybe two. If you are using digestive crackers, one sleeve will do and I like to add a little cinnamon and sugar to try and get closer to grahams. Melt enough butter (I used about 3/4 stick) and add to the crushed crackers in order to moisten them. Depending on how big your crust is, you can play with the measurements. You want the consistency to be crumbly, but when you press it into your pan, it should make a solid crust. Press the mixture into your pan, making sure that the bottom is even and the sides are an even height. Because the crust has plenty of butter in it, I have never had a problem with it sticking--but if you're into it, you can grease the pan beforehand. Cover the crust with plastic wrap or foil and put it in the refrigerator to rest until you're finished making the filling.

For the filling, take some softened cream cheese (I used a big tub, which is probably like 98 oz in the States now...but here the big tub is more like 12 oz. or 300g) and whip it up with a whisk in a bowl--but really whip it, don't wimp out on it. Add the same amount of ricotta and whip the cheeses together. The 1:1 ratio worked out for me. Add about a half cup of sugar and a two teaspoons of vanilla and whisk well. That's your filling! Taste and make sure you like it, adjust to your gusto. You can also add lemon juice instead of vanilla if it makes you feel good. Fill the pie crust and replace the plastic wrap or foil lid and return to the fridge (2-3 hours).

Moving on to the magical peach-mint sauce I came up with. I cut up those lovely peaches and I had been thinking the whole day about what herb I could use to accompany peaches, all while singing Shake Your Groove Thing (you're a jive turkey if you get that reference). I came up with peach-mint, peach-basil, and peach-lavender. I am sure I'll try them all eventually, but today we went for peach-mint. 

In order to avoid having little specks of mint cramping the style of the soft peaches, I made a mint syrup by infusing the mint leaves into 1/2 cup of water and dissolving 1/2 cup of sugar after the mint was finished infusing (3 minutes). Bring the syrup to a boil and take off the heat. Set aside. Now wash, peel, and dice the peaches. Add the last 1/4 stick of butter to a pan and heat until melted but not clarified, add the peaches, and cook that down a little bit. It will be creamy and full of joy. Add the mint syrup and cook down for about 10 more minutes. Cool to room temperature or throw into the refrigerator until you're ready to top the cake.

After about 2-3 hours of chilling the cheesecake should be set and ready to cut and serve. I topped it with the peach-mint sauce and sprinkled some crust crumble on top. I actually dove into this slice before I took a picture! Haha, I hope you enjoy it just as much. The peach-mint sauce is smooth and refreshing and the cheesecake is a cool contender with it's baked relative, especially with that great crunch on the bottom. It is a great, light dessert for these hot summer days.

Listening to the Stuff You Should Know Podcast on Geysers: Nature's Innuendo.

P'cahns (Pecans) and the Season of Stone Fruits

It is time for stone fruits, even on this side of the pond. I was telling the handsome Spaniard today about how we would travel down to Georgia to load up on the peaches during the season, and we could pick our own or drive by on one of the many long stretches of highway sprinkled with individual peach peddlers. Now that is some serious fruit. The peaches we picked were as big as my fist, fuzzy wuzzy, bursting with that golden juice and succulent flesh, and their skin was patterned with the traditional southern sunset. I mean, with memories like those, how can I even try to avoid the mountains of delicious peaches, nectarines, apricots, and plums that are piling high in the fresh markets down the street? It's simple, I can't!.

I also have a coveted stash of pecans, courtesy of a birthday care package from a dear friend of mine. I couldn't wait on them any longer, so today I whipped up some candied and spiced pecans to put on this incredible salad I'm about to tell you about. To me, pecans are one of the main ingredients of fine southern cuisine, and are native to North America. I cannot think of Derby Pie, Thanksgiving stuffing, sweet potato souffle, or spiced nuts without pecans at center stage. Needless to say, pecans are one of my comfort foods, and at 30 euros a kilo ($40/ 2.2 lbs) they are a little beyond reach here in Spain, even though I heard they are growing them now in Málaga. So, busting them out, spicing them up, and eating them as simply as I could in a salad was my best effort to have the pecan sing it's beautiful melody to us.

All this talk of peaches and pecans brings me to today's summer super salad! I think that spiced pecans with their punch of flavor mixed with the sweetness and depth of a grilled peach is the perfect combination for a salad. I simply combined these ingredients with fresh spinach and a beautiful Spanish extra-virgin olive oil. So easy and so incredibly satisfying.

Grilled Peach and Spinach Salad with Superbly Spiced Pecans

Some healthy handfuls of fresh spinach, washed and torn into salad-size pieces
2 Just ripe peaches, cut away from the pit into slices
Extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt

Pecans
1 Tbsp. Butter
1 tsp. Sugar
1 tsp. Chimayo chili powder (or other fragrant chili powder)
Pinch of Salt

It's pretty easy to make up the superbly spiced pecans. Place a small skillet on medium high heat and melt down the butter and sugar. When it gets nice and foamy (but not brown!), add in the chili powder and stir it all together, you'll immediately start smelling the chili--when that happens, add the pecans. Stir the pecans, making sure that they are all coated in the spicy syrup. Continue toasting the pecans in the syrup over medium heat until they are toasted through, but do not stop stirring (7-10 minutes). The more you let them sit on the pan, the more likely they are to burn, and that would be a tragedy. Sprinkle that pinch of salt over the pecans and stir them well. Turn off the heat and spread out the nuts evenly on a plate to cool down (meanwhile you can make up the peaches). The syrup will make the nuts candied, so separating them makes sure that you don't end up with one disc of pecan bark, rather separate candied pieces of joy.

For the peaches, make sure they are washed and clean because we'll be eating them skin-on. Cut slices of the peach away from the pit and put them directly on the grill. I use a stovetop grill on high heat. Oh, the caramelization! It is gorgeous. They will stick a bit due to the precious golden sugar, so if you don't have a non-stick, remember to prepare your cooking surface with a wipe of olive oil. Grill for a few minutes each side, depending on how grillified you want them, I doubt you could overdo it. When they are finished, let them rest for a few minutes on a seperate plate.

At this point, you can rinse and prepare the bed of spinach, which will be the base of the salad. Then you distribute your peaches evenly among however many plates you are serving. The color contrast between the vibrant green of the spinach and the golden peaches dripping in their grilled syrup, that alone is a reason to get excited about lunch. Then you add those spicy, sweet, crunchy pecans and you have a meal that will make anybody's day a happy day!

Finish off that phenomenal presenation with a drizzle of Spanish gold (olive oil), and a wisp of finishing salt. Now you can rest assured that you will be eating a delicious meal abundant with the fruits of the season!

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Listening to Kyle Meredith on WFPK Radio Louisville