Stone Fruit and Tea Granita, Fresh Peach Ice Cream, Nectarine Rosemary Galette served with Salted Cinnamon Caramel Sauce

Methods and Directions

• Place heavy cream and cinnamon sticks into a heavy saucepan. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes.
• Remove from heat and cover; allow the cinnamon sticks to infuse the cream for about 15 minutes.
• Remove cinnamon sticks.
• Set cream aside. Reheat cream just before adding it to the caramelized sugar.
• In a heavy saucepan, caramelize the sugar without stirring until it takes on an amber colour.
• Carefully pour in the reheated cinnamon-scented cream (the mixture will bubble up so be careful when stirring).
• Using a heat resistant silicone spatula, stir until the mixture becomes smooth.
• Add butter and blend.
• Add the salt and stir to dissolve.
• This sauce may be refrigerated, covered, and then reheated gently over a hot water bath at time of serving.

Cream Cheese and Butter Pastry

• In the bowl of an electric mixer outfitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and cream cheese until smooth, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl occasionally.
• Add the egg and water mixture and mix to blend.
• Mix in the rosemary.
• Then finally add the flour, sugar and salt, mixing just until the dry ingredients disappear.
• Scrape the sides and bottom of the mixing bowl to be sure that all ingredients are well blended.
• Remove to a lightly floured surface and knead briefly to compress the dough.
• Flatten the dough into a round disk and wrap well in plastic wrap.
• Chill in the refrigerator until firm, about one hour.
• On a lightly floured surface, using a rolling pin, roll the chilled dough into a sheet, approximately ? inch thick.
• Using a 6 inch round cookie cutter, or a small knife, cut the dough into four circles, each measuring 6 inches in diameter.
• Place the dough circles on a parchment-lined sheet pan and chill until ready to complete the galettes.
• Any dough remaining after the four circles have been made may be gathered together gently and then wrapped and chilled before re-rolling for another use.

Streusel (crumble topping)

• In the bowl of an electric mixer, outfitted with a paddle attachment, mix all of the ingredients together, processing only until the mixture turns into a pebbly texture.
• Do not over mix or the mixture will turn into a paste. (Alternatively, you can mix by hand, breaking up the butter and mixing it into the dry ingredients until the mixture turns into a pebbly texture.)
• Set aside until ready to assemble the galettes.

For the nectarines:

• Slice the nectarines into thin wedges, approximately ? inch thick.
• Brush the cut surfaces lightly with the lemon juice.
• Sprinkle lightly with granulated sugar and flour.
• prinkle bread crumbs in the centres of each dough circle.
• Arrange the nectarines compactly as you wish on top of the bread crumbs in the centre of the dough, leaving a 1½ inch margin of dough uncovered.
• Fold the edge of the dough toward the centre of the galette, covering the outer edge of the nectarines.
• Pinch the dough at ½ to ¾ inch intervals, making a decorative pleat around the outside of galette.
• Brush the outer edge of the dough with an egg wash made by combining 1 egg yolk with just enough water (about 1-2 teaspoons) to achieve a paintable consistency.
• Sprinkle Streusel from above generously over the nectarines. Bake in a preheated 375º F. oven for approximately 30-40 minutes, or until golden brown.
• Serve warm or at room temperature, garnished, if desired, with a sprig of fresh rosemary that has first been sprayed lightly with aerosolized flavourless oil and then dipped into granulated sugar. (This garnish looks nice but is not meant to be eaten). The stone fruit granita and/or the buttermilk or fresh peach ice cream would make a wonderful tart creamy accompaniment here. Serve, as desired, as well with the caramel sauce shown below.

• Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl,mix well and then transfer to an electric ice cream machine.
• Freeze, covered, until firm.
• Serve asan accompaniment to the Nectarine Rosemary Galette or on its own, or sauced with the following Salted Cinnamon Caramel Sauce.

• Pit the fruits and discard pits. Place simple syrup and tea leaves into a medium sized heavy saucepan. Simmer to infuse, about 15 minutes. Pass the poaching liquid through a fine sieve. Rinse and dry the saucepan and return the sieved liquid to the cleaned saucepan.
• Add the fruit to the liquid in the saucepan and simmer for approximately 30 minutes, or until tender but not mushy. Allow to cool to room temperature in the liquid and set aside until ready to plate the dessert.

Tip: Cooling the poached fruit in the syrup gives the fruit more opportunity to soak up the flavour and scent of the tea. Once cooled, remove the fruit from the liquid, reserving the liquid. Chill both separately and then proceed to make the Granita. For the Granita

• The poached fruit and the poaching liquid are then used as the basis for a lighter pink or deep purple granita (depending on the type of fruit used)
• Simply puree the fruit in a food processor until smooth, add as much of the cold tea-flavoured poaching liquid as needed to make a medium thick puree (taste for sweetness at this point).
• Now add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and then freeze the mixture in an ice cream machine.
• For each 16 ounces of puree, use approximately 4 ounces of simple syrup and the juice of one medium sized lemon.
• Alternatively, place in a shallow container and freeze until hard and then process the frozen mixture until smooth and serve immediately in scoops as an accompaniment to the Nectarine Rosemary Galette, or on its own.