NEWS for North Dakotans
Agriculture Communication, North Dakota State University
7 Morrill Hall, Fargo, ND 58105-5665
August 19, 1999
It seems that New Yorkers, especially Manhattanites, are rediscovering the lusciousness of the last course: dessert. Pastry chefs in many of the Big Apple's classy restaurants are no longer content to serve pomes without pomp. Nothing carrying a moniker as mundane as "apple dumpling"--not even one wrapped in the flakiest puff pastry imaginable--will suffice.
Instead, it's an Apple Napoleon for a fruity finale. Or, a roasted pear accompanied by an understated blue cheese. Or, a pineapple beignet (a New Orleans-inspired yeast-leavened pastry that's deep-fried; pronounced "ben YEA").
No one told me dessert had gone out of style. If it weren't for my periodic perusal of The New York Times via the Internet, I'd still be fashionably disfranchised.
Those of us living on the Great Plains should be thankful for many things, but in light of this latest news about dessert, we should be especially thankful that our adherence to certain culinary traditions sometimes spares us from being on the cutting edge of frivolous food fads. We'll never lose our way gastronomically as long as we cling to the traditional potluck dinner.
Virtually every potluck dinner I've attended has had an entire table devoted to desserts: cookies, puddings, cakes, more cakes and the Midwest specialty, "bars." Many times, the dessert table features a new arrival to the community, and then the recipe will pass around faster than a chain letter.
The recipe for dessert sauce that follows might not be suited to potluck affairs because of the ice cream or frozen yogurt it requires. On the other hand, it might qualify for that new arrival everyone in attendance is hoping for. I know I'd stand in line for a serving because I have a weakness for peaches.
Peach Rum-Pecan Sauce
(adapted from a recipe appearing the August 1991 issue of Bon Appetit magazine)
Yield: 6 servingsIngredients:
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3 large firm ripe peaches
6 tablespoons butter
½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
3 tablespoons whipping cream
½ cup toasted pecan pieces
½ teaspoon rum-flavored extract (or more to taste)
vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurtProcedure:
Place lemon juice in medium bowl. Peel, pit peaches and thinly slice peaches into bowl; toss to coat with lemon juice and set aside. Melt butter in heavy saucepan over medium heat, add brown sugar and stir until mixture thickens and bubbles. Add cream 1 tablespoon at a time, stir until sugar dissolves and sauce is thick and smooth, about 3 to 5 minutes. Blend in peaches, pecans and extract. Stirring constantly, cook sauce until heated through. Taste sauce and adjust flavor with additional extract, if desired. Divided ice cream among six bowls and spoon equal amounts of sauce over each serving.
What's Your Take on This, Julie?
Summer provides a excellent opportunity to reach for more fruits, especially when they're in season and at their best quality and price. With their pleasant fragrance, you might smell peaches in the produce section before you see them.
When selecting peaches, look for a smooth appearance and a golden color. The rosiness of some peaches is more a result of variety than of ripeness. Peaches should yield to slight pressure in the palm of your hand.
A bushel of peaches (48 pounds) will make about 18 quarts of frozen or canned peaches. If you're estimating weights for a recipe, they amount to about three per pound. If you plan to can peaches, purchase them slightly underripe to control bruising. Remember the quality of your end product is only as good as the quality of your ingredients, so start with the best. You can ripen them in loosely closed paper bags at room temperature and then refrigerate.
Peaches, like bananas, naturally contain enzymes that cause browning when their flesh is exposed to oxygen after peeling. For best quality when preserving peaches, add an antioxidant such as ascorbic acid to control browning.
From a nutrition standpoint, one medium peach contains about 40 calories, no fat and 1.4 grams of dietary fiber, plus some vitamin A and vitamin C. Remember that one medium fruit or a half-cup of cut-up fruit counts as a serving toward the 5-A-Day recommendation--that's two servings of fruit plus three servings of vegetables.
In addition to peaches, this week's recipe for Peach Rum-Pecan Sauce contains ingredients from the tip of the Food Guide Pyramid, which we should eat sparingly. One serving (one-sixth of the recipe) contains 270 calories, 20 grams of fat as a result of the nut and butter content, 2 grams of fiber, 20 percent of the recommended daily vitamin A (as carotenoids), and 13 percent of the recommended daily vitamin C.
If you don't have waistline expansion plans, you might choose a smaller portion of this topping, or at least be cautious in the frozen dessert you choose to top. A half-cup of "premium" (high-fat) vanilla ice cream contains about 220 calories and 15 grams of fat while a half-cup of low-fat vanilla ice cream contains about 100 calories and 3 grams of fat. Low-fat frozen yogurt is another option. Read the food labels to help make your choice.
Or, you might top off this treat with a brisk walk. Take an extra peach to munch along the way.
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Sources: Dean Hulse (701) 231-6136
Julie Garden-Robinson (701) 231-7187
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