Grilled Peaches with mascarpone cream

Prep time: approximately 20 minutes

Serves 4 people

I don’t really bake desserts. I make exceptions for my daughter, but that’s about it. I’m a scientist, and when I used to work in the lab, I said it was because it was too much like work with all the measuring. Now that most of my job description involves meetings and writing, I’ve lost that excuse, and I still don’t do it. Oh, well.

I love this recipe for a summer dessert, particularly for hosting BBQs. I just make the marscapone cream ahead of time, and throw the peaches and bacon on the grill once the main course is grilled. It’s really simple, incredibly tasty and a surprising gem to the meal.

4 peaches (cut in half - they should be on the firm side of ripe)

8 oz tub of mascarpone cheese

1/2 t vanilla extract

1/2 t of each cardamom, nutmeg and cloves

a pinch of salt

2t honey

3 slices of bacon

1t canola, vegetable or grapeseed oil

Preheat the grill to medium-high heat, about 500 degrees F.

First, make the cream: whisk together the mascarpone, cardamom, nutmeg, cloves, honey, vanilla extract and salt. I typically am the person who adds extra vanilla to everything. Don’t do this - because it typically has an alcohol base it can cause the mascarpone to separate if you add to much. If you want extra vanilla flavor, add seeds from a vanilla bean.

Fry the bacon so that it is crispy. This can be done on a cast iron pan placed directly onto the grill, or on a burner ahead of time. Once cool, chop or crumble into small pieces.

Brush the peach halves with oil, and put on the grill, flesh-side down. Cook with the grill top on until the peach is slightly softened and grill marks are visible. remove and allow to cool to room temperature. Once the peaches have cooled, spoon mascarpone cream onto the center of each peach and top with crumbled bacon. Enjoy!

Leftover tip: If there is any left-over, remove the bacon and add the rest to a blender with a splash of water. Once blended, it is an awesome topping for fruit salad the next day.

Substitutions:  

To make this without dairy or cow’s milk, replace with a cow’s milk-free or non-dariy creamcheese. Add an extra tablespoon of honey

To make vegetarian, omit the bacon and replace with toasted walnuts, chopped