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Pêche Melba

Peach and raspberry sundae

Pêche Melba: poached peaches with vanilla ice cream and raspberry sauce

Pêche Melba was created by Auguste Escoffier at the Savoy in London in the 1890s for the Australian opera singer Nellie Melba, and it became a classic of French summer menus: ripe peaches poached in vanilla syrup, served on vanilla ice cream with a sharp, fresh raspberry sauce. The common mistake is using hard, underripe peaches, which have little flavour. Chef's tip: dip the peaches in boiling water for 20 seconds after poaching and the skins will slip off.
Total time
25 min
Difficulty
easy
Serves
4
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Ingredients

Serves4

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What you'll need

Fresh ingredients (2)

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Method

0/4 done
  1. Step 1: Bring the 4 oz sugar, 2 cups water and 1 vanilla pod, split to the boil.

    5 min
  2. Step 2: Add the 4 ripe peaches and poach at a gentle simmer for 5–8 minutes, turning, until tender when pierced. Lift out, slip off the skins, halve and stone. Cool in the syrup.

    10 min
  3. Step 3: Blend the 9 oz raspberries with the 1 ⅜ oz icing sugar and 1 tsp lemon juice and press through a sieve to remove the seeds.

    5 min
  4. Step 4: Put a scoop of 4 scoops vanilla ice cream in each glass, top with two peach halves and spoon over the raspberry sauce. Scatter with the 1 tbsp toasted flaked almonds.

Nutrition per serving

Calories
300 kcal
Protein
4 g
Carbs
50 g
Fat
10 g
Fibre
4 g

Nutrition values are estimates.

K
Recipe by

KrazyBadal

All recipes by this chef →

Good to know

How long does pêche Melba take?
About 25 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 10 minutes to cook.
How many people does it serve?
4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
Is it vegetarian?
Yes. It has no meat or fish.
Is it gluten free?
Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
What can I use instead of sugar?
Caster sugar, same amount.
What can I use instead of icing sugar?
Caster sugar, same amount.

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