Cranberry Coupe Melba
Submitted by caitlinspal
Elegant cranberry twist on Peach Melba with poached peach halves, vanilla ice cream, and a pureed cranberry-kirsch sauce. A stunning dinner party dessert served in stemmed glasses.
YIELD
6 servingsPREP
10 minCOOK
25 minREADY
2 hrsThe classic Peach Melba gets a cranberry makeover, and honestly, it might be even better than the original.
Fresh peaches are blanched, peeled, and gently poached in vanilla sugar syrup until tender but still holding their shape.
That same syrup then cooks cranberries until they burst, which get pureed into a vibrant, tart sauce spiked with a tablespoon of kirsch (cherry brandy) for a boozy, elegant finish.
Served in stemmed glasses with poached peach halves standing upright alongside a scoop of vanilla ice cream, this is a dessert that commands the table.
Chef Tips
- Blanch the peaches for exactly 30 seconds, no more. Overdo it and the flesh starts to cook, making them mushy before you even get to poaching
- Poach the peach halves until tender but still firm. They should yield to a knife but not fall apart
- No fresh peaches? Canned freestone peaches work in a pinch. Skip the blanching and poaching, and just use them straight from the can
Ingredients
Directions
Blanch peaches in boiling water 30 seconds.
Immediately rinse with cold running water; drain well.
Peel peaches; cut in half; remove and discard pits.
Heat 2 cups water, the sugar and vanilla in medium saucepan to boiling; boil, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes.
Sugar should be completely dissolved.
Add peach halves; poach until tender but still firm, about 10 minutes.
Remove peaches with slotted spoon to bowl, reserving syrup; refrigerate until cold, about 1 hour.
Add cranberries to syrup.
Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer 10 minutes.
Purée mixture in food processor or blender; stir in kirsch.
Refrigerate, covered, until cold, about 1 hour.
At serving time, stand 2 peach halves upright in each of 6 stemmed glasses; place a scoop of ice cream.
NOTES: If fresh peaches aren’t available, you can used canned freestone peaches.
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