Baked almond-stuffed peaches recipe

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: about 40 minutes

 

5 large ripe but firm peaches

10 dried apricots, finely diced

6 amaretti biscuits, crumbled

2 teaspoons pure almond essence

1 tablespoon brandy

1 eggwhite

1/3 cup (50 g) whole blanched almonds

 

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C. Cut the peaches in half and remove the stones. Arrange 8 of the halves, cut side up, in a shallow baking dish. Set aside. Finely dice the remaining 2 peach halves.

 

2 Combine the diced peach with the dried apricots, crumbled amaretti, almond essence, brandy and eggwhite. Stir to mix thoroughly.

 

3 Heat a small, heavy ungreased frying pan and lightly toast the almonds, turning and tossing every so often, until they are lightly browned in spots. Remove and coarsely chop, in a food processor or by hand, to make a mixture of small chunks of nuts and ground nuts.

 

4 Add the chopped almonds to the fruit and amaretti mixture and mix well. Use to fill the hollows in the peach halves, heaping up the filling and pressing it gently together. Cover the baking dish with a tent of cooking foil.

 

5 Bake for 25–30 minutes, then remove the foil. Increase the oven temperature to 200°C and bake for a further 5–10 minutes, or until the nutty topping is lightly browned. The peaches are best when warm, but they can be chilled before serving.

 

 

Each serving provides 837 kJ, 200 kcal, 6 g protein, 9 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 24 g carbohydrate (21 g sugars), 5 g fibre

 

 

Peaches contain plenty of vitamin C (31 mg per 100 g) and this can help the body to absorb iron present in other foods – in this case from dried apricots. Iron-deficiency anaemia is the most common deficiency disease in the world, so every little bit helps. Dried apricots also provide vitamin A and plenty of potassium for regulating blood pressure.

 

Almonds not only have a delicious and distinctive flavour, but also contain protein and plenty of vitamin E.