There are still a few more days of summer left, and even more days of grilling to come. If you haven't yet tried grilling fruit, now is your chance! Grilled pineapple is a classic, but there are many other delicious fruits that grill well. One of my favorite late summer fruits to grill are peaches, especially peaches that are a little overripe since they have more sugar to caramelize.
Grilled fruit makes an especially delicious and fresh summer dessert. Topped with a little whipped cream, ice cream, or blueberry sauce, it is so easy and a perfect end to a September evening. Grilled fruits are not only good in desserts, but they are great in salads or just on their own!
The first thing to do is cut the peaches in half. You can do this exactly how you would cut an avocado. If it doesn't quite want to come apart, you can also cut along the pit like you would a mango. The next step is to toss with a neutral flavored oil. This is not where I would use my robust olive oil; grapeseed or vegetable oils are perfect. You want a very light coating of oil.
I grill the peaches on the cut side until they have formed nice dark grill marks. You can flip them over if you wish, chef's choice! After I take them off the grill, depending on the dish, I either leave the peach halves as they are, or dice them. The reason I don't put small pieces on the grill is because they can burn up easily, fall through, and can be hard to flip. Once you have your delicious grilled peaches done, drizzle with a bit of honey for dessert or sprinkle with salt for savory applications.
Grilled Peach Dessert
Serves 2
2 peaches, halved
2 tablespoons grapeseed oil
2 tablespoons honey
3/4 cup your favorite blueberry jam or:
- 1 cup blueberries
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon cardamom
1 tablespoon mint, for garnish
Toss peaches in oil and place flesh side down on a pre-heated grill. Grill until dark grill marks have formed and peach is tender. Toss in honey.
Either heat jam in a small sauce pot, or combine blueberries, sugar and cardamom in a small sauce pot on medium low heat and cook until blueberries have popped and mixture has become syrupy. Spoon over grilled peaches, and top with chopped mint.
The Chopping Block will be grilling on our Lincoln Square patio as long as Mother Nature allows (at least until the middle of October), so join us for a grilling class this month!
