Fruit of the Grill

 

The discovery of a new way to prepare a food, or a twist on an old familiar ingredient, entices me. Yet, I don’t prescribe to such recent trends as liquid nitrogen cooking where olive oil is turned into a solid bubble or frozen foam. As fun as they night be might to sample in a restaurant, they are so far afield from what a home cook can manage that it all ends up seeming a bit silly and pretentious rather than exciting.

It is swelteringly hot and humid today, so much so that kayaking and swimming in the Chesapeake Bay are on the menu too, but not until later in the day when the cooling late afternoon breezes arrive.

Thus, first a hunt and gather trip to the farm stand is in order. There, under the shaded inner rafters, the Mennonite girls bustle about in their long dresses and white muslin caps painstakingly arranging strawberries just so in green cardboard boxes.

My eyes are drawn first to the berries and then on to pyramids of peaches. Soft and fuzzy like miniature versions of a baby’s head, tinged with crimson and mauve. I heft one in my hand, the shape nestles perfectly in my palm. Not local for sure, but when I ask I am told they have arrived from the Carolinas. Their heavenly sweet smell convinces me. In my basket they go, along with a new selection of potted herbs for the garden. This batch includes rosemary, an additional two plants of sweet basil (you can never have enough basil)  and one of the ever so special purple basils. I have plans for this basil. I also have a vision of the peaches meeting the grill since it's far too hot to cook indoors.

5 basic ingredients and a few minutes of prep work gets the dessert part of dinner set in a few moments.

Grilled Peaches

Assume one peach per person

Firm but ripe peaches

Fresh butter

Powdered cinnamon

Honey

Basil (purple if you can get it). Mint can substitute.

Slice the peaches by holding them in one hand and split by running the knife in a circle all around down to the pit. Gently hold each half and twist in opposite directions and the two halves will pop apart. Remove pit if possible, if not it can be left in and removed when served.

Place the halves skin side down on a plate, add a pat of butter to the middle, dust with cinnamon, drizzle with honey (perhaps the tiniest sprinkle of salt to enhance the flavor).

Grill on medium heat, skin side down, until grill marks appear after approximately 5 minutes. Flip over and grill another 4-5 minutes. Gently scoop off the grill using a spatula. Return to plate and decorate with a basil leaves. Serve lukewarm with ice cream or softly whipped cream.