Sweet peaches with alchermes

Ingredients:

for the cookies

  • 3 eggs at room temperature
  • 170 g sugar
  • 100 g soft butter at room temperature
  • 4 tablespoons milk
  • 500 g 00 flour
  • 1 sachet baking powder

for the chocolate pastry cream

  • 400 g fresh whole milk
  • 100 g fresh liquid cream (which you can substitute with 80 g whole milk)
  • 4 very fresh medium egg yolks
  • 150 g sugar (reduce to 130 g)
  • 40 g potato starch
  • 1 vanilla bean or 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 150 g 70% dark chocolate

for decoration

  • 50 ml Alchermes liqueur
  • granulated sugar
  • leaves for decoration

Preparation:

cookies

  1. place the eggs and sugar in a stand mixer (otherwise you can use electric beaters) beat for a couple of minutes until you get a light and frothy mixture
  2. add the soft butter in pieces and the milk and continue to mix
  3. add the sifted flour together with the baking powder (if using a stand mixer, replace the whisk with the K-beater)
  4. when the dough is soft and slightly sticky, pour the dough onto a lightly floured surface and work it a little to make it less sticky
  5. divide the dough into 25 g portions
  6. form balls and then flatten the bottom when you place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper (this trick is essential for making perfectly shaped peaches!)
  7. bake in a preheated STATIC oven at 180° for about 15 minutes: the cookies should remain slightly whitish on top and lightly browned underneath
  8. remove from the oven and let cool
  9. with the tip of a sharp knife, hollow out the cookies.

chocolate pastry cream

  1. beat the egg yolks with sugar and vanilla for about 2 minutes. Use electric beaters to obtain a light, frothy, and puffed mixture
  2. add the sifted potato starch to the mixture
  3. mix with electric beaters until a homogeneous, smooth, and perfectly whipped product is obtained
  4. in a saucepan, mix fresh cream and milk, place on the heat and bring to a boil
  5. be careful not to boil the liquids too much
  6. as soon as you see the very first bubbles, remove from the heat, quickly pour the mixture of egg yolk, sugar, and potato starch into the milk
  7. put back on moderate heat
  8. wait a few seconds: the egg mixture floats on the surface of the milk without sinking to the bottom, precisely because the whipped egg yolk and sugar have incorporated enough air to remain on the surface. It will take about 1 minute and you will see "craters" appear on the surface, which are milk bubbles breaking through the egg yolk surface, and little by little the egg will detach from the sides of the pot, leaving room for the milk
  9. stir quickly with a hand whisk and immediately turn off the heat, in a few seconds the cream is ready
  10. when your cream is still hot, add the previously broken chocolate
  11. stir quickly with the whisk until it is completely melted and immediately pour the cream into a serving dish, spread out well, covered with cling film touching the surface
  12. let it cool completely at room temperature
  13. when the cream is very cold, it will seem dense and compact; just stir it quickly with a hand whisk and the chocolate pastry cream is ready to be used

peaches

  1. put the cream in a piping bag with a smooth nozzle and fill the cookies
  2. join 2 halves to form a peach, letting a little cream escape
  3. pour the Alchermes into a small dish and dip the peaches, removing them quickly
  4. let the Alchermes-soaked peaches drain
  5. roll them in granulated sugar
  6. place the Alchermes peaches on a small plate or in cupcake liners.

Tips:

  • store the sweet peaches in the fridge and take them out half an hour before serving

  • the peaches should not be left in the Alchermes for too long, otherwise they will get too soggy and lose consistency

  • the sweet peaches can be stored for a couple of days in the refrigerator, in an airtight container, otherwise they will lose their freshness

Once upon a time, Alchermes was considered an elixir of long life and was even given to children as a calming agent!

Peaches are a traditional sweet perfect for breakfast, a snack, or as a dessert to pleasantly end a lunch or dinner.

Don't have time to prepare them? You can buy our HERE, which are handmade with a family recipe.

Enjoy your meal!