Peaches in Muscat Wine

It’s time to man up! That’s right, for the next few days it’s just me, Grizzly, and Fiona. Audrey is away at a conference, and us goofballs are left here to hold down the fort. It hasn’t even been 24 hours since she left, and there’s already been a trip to the biergarten, late night salsa dancing, and pizza parties for breakfast! Hey, we’re doing our best, okay?! One thing’s for sure, our dessert game isn’t quite the same. However, I’m still trying hard to maintain my sweet tooth. I like to think of this as a hybrid dessert/drink, AKA my wheelhouse. It’s simple, seasonal, and delicious – perfect for your next dinner party . . . or even just chilling at home with the dog and baby!!

PEACHES IN MUSCAT WINE

  Makes 4-5 servings

Ingredients:

• 1/2 bottle of sweet Muscat wine
• 4 ripe peaches
• 4 handfuls of strawberries
• sugar (to taste)

Directions:

• Pour the wine into a bowl and sweeten to taste. How much sugar you will use depends on how sweet you like your dessert. Also, different Muscats can vary in sweetness. You might not need any sugar at all.
• Fill a large bowl of ice water.
• Simmer water in a large pot, and gently add peaches one at a time into the simmering water. After 10-15 seconds (or until you can rub the skin off the flesh of the peach) remove the peach with a slotted spoon and immediately place into the ice water, and swirl to cool quickly and evenly. Be careful not to cook the peaches too long, or they will ruin the fruit. Repeat with all of the peaches.
• Remove the peach skin and carve into 1/2 inch wedges (off of the pit), dropping the wedges into the Muscat wine as you go.
• Once all the peaches are submerged, cover tightly with plastic wrap and place into the refrigerator for an hour to macerate.
• 30 minutes before serving, remove peaches from the refrigerator, taste, and add sugar as needed.
• Spoon into glasses, garnish with strawberries and serve!

(images by HonestlyYUM; recipe adapted from The Zuni Cafe Cookbook)