So, it’s been a while since my last recipe addition. But, I have a really good reason for this. My beautiful Nanna and her lovely sister, who I know as ‘Aunty Gina’, arrived in London last Sunday.
They came at the most perfect time because, to be honest, I have been feeling a little homesick lately. It has been an absolute joy spending time with them and has certainly helped cure my bout of homesickness. We spent the week picnicking in Hyde Park, strolling along the Thames and even crocheted a couple of scarves! We visited John Keats’s London home (my Nanna’s absolute favourite poet) and she even ate some mulberries from his very old mulberry tree.
My beautiful Nanna eating mulberries
After loitering around London for the week, we all jumped on a plane and jetted off to Italy. We are currently in, La città eterna, the eternal city, Roma. My Nanna is originally from Italy and she wanted us all here with her to visit her home country. Kristian and I are here, as well as my brother, Alex and his girlfriend, Amy.
It is so surreal walking down the stunning streets of Rome with my family at my side. Of course, we have already had our fair share of delicious food. We arrived yesterday and I have already eaten the best gelato I have ever had. So amazing. Smooth, creamy and perfect. Everything an ice cream should be! I shall give you more details in the travel section of the blog shortly. If you venture to bella Roma, you will love me for sharing with you one of the best ice cream shops ever!
Something I am always jealous of whenever I come to Italy is the quality of the fresh produce they have here. The tomatoes are always red and plump, the apples are always crisp and juicy, the strawberries are always sweet and lovely...I could go on, but you probably get the point.
We are lucky to have a little kitchenette in our beautiful apartment (which is actually part of an old Roman ruin, but more about that later). I decided that rather than cooking something overcomplicated I would make something simple. When the produce is so fresh, it’s a shame to overshadow it with an overload of ingredients.
When I spotted the ripest most beautiful peaches at the market by our b&b this morning, I couldn’t resist. I brought them home in the afternoon and while everyone was having a little siesta, I put our little kitchenette to good use and very simply baked those treasured fruits.
Peaches with a view
There is a little ‘Bio’ shop right near our apartment. It is tiny and cute and has the most beautiful little edible delights on offer. Other than the seasonal produce, there are dainty homemade biscuits. I bought a few of the gluten free rice and lemon shortbreads to top the peaches with. A very good decision, if I do say so myself. Of course, you could make your own shortbread to use or even top with an alternate cookie (I imagine Amaretti biscuits would work well here). I suppose you could call this a ‘kind of healthy’ peach crumble.
It makes for a very simple but very delicious after-siesta treat.
Buon Appetito!
SERVES 4-6
4 fairly large peaches, sliced in half, pits removes
Juice of one orange
2 heaped teaspoons of sugar
125g shortbread, or other crumbly cookie (such as Amaretti), crumbled
Natural yogurt, cream or ice cream, to serve
Preheat the oven to 170˚C fan-forced.
Place the peach halves on a baking dish. Fill the dish with enough water that it comes about 1cm up the side of the pan.
Squeeze the juice of the orange evenly over the peaches. Sprinkle each peach half evenly with a little brown sugar.
Bake in the oven for 35-45 minutes, until the peaches have browned on top and the flesh is lovely and soft.
Serve the peach halves warm, or at room temperature, topped with the crumbled cookie. If desired, add a dollop of yogurt, cream or ice cream.