Moscato Wine and Honey Poached Peaches
The flavors of cinnamon, cardamom, and allspice infuse these Moscato wine and honey poached peaches, creating a simple and elegant summer dessert. Serve the peaches with their spiced syrup over cake, with ice cream, or with a dollop of mascarpone.
Servings 4 servings
Calories 250kcal
Ingredients
- 2 cups Moscato wine, or other sweet white wine
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 8-10 allspice berries
- 4 cardamom pods
- 8-10 peppercorns
- 2 strips orange zest, about 1/2 inch wide 4-5 inches long
- 4 ripe but firm peaches
Instructions
- Use a saucepan just large enough to hold the peaches in a single layer. Add the Moscato, honey, cinnamon, allspice, cardamom, peppercorns, and orange zest.
- Bring the syrup to a boil. Lower the heat and keep it at a simmer for 10 minutes.
- While the syrup is simmering, prepare the peaches. Cut each peach in half. Pry the pit out of the peach half.
- Add the peaches to the syrup and bring to a simmer. Poach until the peels are starting to come away from the peaches and the peaches are tender when you pierce them. This will take anywhere from 5-20 minutes, though for ripe but firm peaches it will take 12-15 minutes.
- Remove the peaches to a bowl with a slotted spoon and let cool. Once cool, remove the skins.
- Strain the spices out of the syrup. Return the syrup to the saucepan and bring to a rolling boil. Boil until reduced by about half, the bubbles are stacking themselves on top of each other, and the syrup coats a spoon.
- Take the syrup off the heat and allow to cool.
- Both the peaches and syrup can be refrigerated until you are ready to serve them. (They will stay good for about 2 days in the fridge.)
- To serve, set out the peach halves in bowls or dessert cups. Pour some of the syrup over. Top with ice cream, mascarpone cheese, or whipped cream.
Notes
- Removing the pit: If you are not concerned with having perfect peach halves for your recipe, feel free to cut the peaches into quarters. This makes removing the pit much easier.
- Cling-stone peaches: For cling-stone peaches, cut around the equator of the peach and not from top to bottom. This will allow even very clingy pits to release.
- Serving: Poached peaches can be served by themselves as a simple, but elegant, dessert or used as part of another recipe. You can serve them over cake, on pancakes, on cheesecake, in a parfait, or anywhere else you would enjoy tender, spiced peaches.
- Mascarpone: If you wish to use the mascarpone, mix 4 oz of mascarpone with about 1 tablespoon of the reduced poaching syrup. Dollop the mascarpone over the peaches.
Nutrition
Calories: 250kcal