Rachel’s Pesche Con Crema
Ciao and benvenuti to Smeg’s favourite week of The Great Australian Bake Off… it’s Italian Week! In this episode, the bakers took on Rachel’s beautiful Pesche Con Crema, and you can too - find the full recipe below.
Watch the new season of the Foxtel Original The Great Australian Bake Off, Wednesdays at 8.30pm on LifeStyle or on demand.
INGREDIENTS
Peach Jam
200g peach puree
150g jam setting sugar
1 Tbsp lemon juice
Peach Stones
100g Marzipan
Cocoa powder, to colour stone
Pastry Cream
250ml full cream milk
5g vanilla bean paste
3 egg yolks
65g caster sugar
15g plain flour
Biscuit Dough
50g caster sugar
½ lemon, finely zested
160g plain flour
5g baking powder
1 egg
60ml full cream milk
40g unsalted butter, melted
To colour the peaches
200ml peach juice
50ml peach syrup
Rose pink gel colour
Georgia peach gel colour
200g white granulated sugar, to coat
3 fresh lemon myrtle leaves, to decorate
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 170C
1. For the peach jam; place the peach puree and jam sugar into a small saucepan over a medium-high heat and slowly bring up to 105C, stirring occasionally. Stir in the lemon juice, bring back to the boil, then remove from the heat and transfer to a tray. Place in the freezer to chill. Once chilled, transfer into a piping bag.
2. For the peach stone moulds; Place a small amount of marzipan into a half peach stone mould. Gently press the marzipan to completely cover the bottom and sides, to create the shell for your peach stone. Press the middle to create an indent. Repeat with remaining peach mould halves. Discard remaining marzipan. Place on a tray in the fridge. When peach jam has cooled, pipe into all the indents. Chill in the fridge.
3. To make the pastry cream; place the milk and vanilla bean paste into a saucepan over a medium heat and bring to a simmer. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks, sugar and flour into a smooth paste.
Slowly whisk the hot vanilla milk into the egg mixture. Return combined mixture to the saucepan and whisk over a medium heat until the cream thickens and just starts to boil. Pour the pastry cream into a tray and transfer to the fridge. Check it and stir occasionally until it is cool, thick and smooth.
Once cool, put cling film over the top; pressing down to prevent a skin from developing on top of the cream. Keep in the fridge until required.
4. For the biscuits; line a baking tray.
Place the sugar in a bowl, add the lemon zest and use fingers to rub together.
In a large bowl, sift the flour and baking powder together. Add the lemon sugar. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk and melted butter. Gradually add the flour mixture, mixing with a fork until the dough is firm.
Using the ice cream scoop, scoop the dough into 12 walnut-sized balls. Place balls onto the prepared baking tray, spacing 2cm apart. Spray oil lightly onto your hands and smooth the biscuit tops gently with fingertips. Don’t flatten the biscuits.
Bake for 10-12 minutes. The bottom of the biscuits should be lightly browned, the tops will remain pale. Transfer to a rack to cool.
5. To hollow peaches; while the biscuits are still warm, use a melon baller to cut a circle about the size of a fifty-cent piece on the bottom (flat) side of each biscuit, taking care not to crack the edges or scoop through the biscuit. Set aside.
6. To finish the peach stones; carefully remove peach stone halves from the moulds and stick halves together, using fingers to gently seal the edges. Very lightly dust stones with cocoa to resemble a peach stone. Place back in the fridge.
7. To assemble; Fill two halves of the hollowed-out biscuits with one teaspoon of pastry cream. Place a peach stone into one half and pipe around the edge with peach jam. Sandwich with the other half to join and stick the biscuits together. Repeat with remaining biscuits.
8. To colour the peaches; mix the peach juice and syrup in a small bowl. Divide result into two bowls. Add pink food colouring into one bowl and peach food colouring into the other. Fill a separate bowl with the granulated sugar.
Using gloves, gently dip each complete biscuit into the pink food colouring to completely coat. Repeat with the peach colouring. Place on a rack to drain for 1-2 minutes to allow excess juice to drip off, then roll in sugar to coat. Place a fresh leaf at the top of each peach.
