Panna cotta with roasted peaches

 There are many memories of childhood summers - squeals as you ran under the sprinkler, icy-poles melting down your hands as they melted faster than you could eat them. But the smell of ripe peaches always evokes the feelings of carefree, endless summers of childhood. We had a giant peach tree behind our garage, the white variety. Nothing beats the taste of a ripe peach as you bite into it and have the juices running down your chin.

Sadly, I no longer have a peach tree, although my friend Rhonda has a magnificent yellow freestone tree that she shares her bounty with us - these I bottle to enjoy in the depths of winter, when summer feels a long way away.

So as summer is coming to an end, this dish evokes all those memories. In my YouTube video, I have served the peaches in a glass where the pannacotta has been set on an angle. This is very suitable for a dinner party and also means there is no need to unmould the panna cotta. The peach skin is a little tough when cooked, so you may wish to cut the fruit into smaller pieces. The skin does help the fruit maintain its shape during cooking. For us, I usually make the panna cotta in 150 ml moulds, which I then run under hot water for a few seconds before turning out onto a cold plate. Then I leave the peaches in halves to roast and fill the centre hole where the stone was, with the toasted almonds.

Don't skip the mint - even though you will use only a few leaves, the mint makes this dessert pop!

Serves 6

• 300 ml cream
•  300 ml milk
• ¼ cup castor sugar
• 1 vanilla pod, split
• 4 gelatine leaves

• 3 peaches
• 2 tsp honey
• ¼ tsp lemon zest
• 2 tbl brown sugar
• 10 g butter
• 2 tsp water
• 1 tbl brandy (optional)
• ½ tsp vanilla extract

To serve

• Mint 
• ¼ cup slivered almonds, toasted

Panna cotta (make ahead)

In a large saucepan, gently heat the milk, cream, and sugar until it reaches 40 degrees. Take from the heat and add the vanilla pod. Allow to sit for 10 minutes to infuse.

Soak the gelatine leaves in cold water.

Remove the vanilla pod and heat on high until 90 degrees (just before boiling). Remove from the heat and stir in the gelatine leaves one at a time.

Lay 6 glasses at a 45-degree slant and carefully pour in the custard. Refrigerate for 4 hours.

Roasted Peaches

Preheat oven 220°C fan/240°C.

Halve the peaches and remove the stones. Cut each half into 4.

Arrange the fruit in a small baking dish. Sprinkle with brown sugar and lemon zest. Mix together the vanilla, brandy, and water and pour over the peaches. Drizzle with honey. Dob small pieces of butter onto each piece of fruit.

Bake for 20 minutes, basting at the 10-minute mark, until caramelised.

Set aside to come to room temperature.

To toast the almonds, place them in a hot, dry pan and stir constantly until golden. Remove from the pan and allow to cool.

To Serve

Carefully place 4 pieces of peach in each glass. Sprinkle with toasted slivered almonds and finely shredded mint leaves.