White Peach Sangria

Being of Irish heritage, I like a good cocktail now and then, and one of my favorite summertime concoctions is this white sangria. I first tasted a version of it at Bobby Flay's now-shuttered Spanish-style restaurant, Bolo, many years ago. I liked it so much, in fact, that I asked Bobby's assistant, my dear friend Stephanie Banyas, for the recipe, which she happily gave me. The original recipe called for white peach puree, which is available from restaurant supply sources, and difficult for home cooks to get their hands on. So I adapted it somewhat, and use Ceres peach juice, which is available at many supermarkets. If you can't find peach juice, though, you can really use any light fruit juice, such as pineapple or mango. Just make sure you use white peach slices in the fruit mix. This drink is refreshing and light, and goes down easy, so beware. Two or three can be downright dangerous.

White Peach Sangria

Serves 4 (You can double or triple this recipe easily)

1 bottle (750 ml) dry white wine, preferably a Spanish table wine (I use Marques de La Villa Toro)

1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

1 cup peach juice, such as Ceres brand (available in most supermarkets)

1/3 cup brandy

1/4 cup Cointreau, Triple Sec or Pama (pomegranite liqueur)

3 cups sliced peaches, oranges, lemons, limes and/or green apples

A few fresh raspberries

1/2 cup simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water brought to a boil and cooled)

Ice

1. Combine wine, fruit juices, brandy, Cointreau, and half of the sliced fruit and stir. Add simple syrup. Refrigerate for at least 8 hours.

2. When you’re ready to serve, strain out fruit from pitcher and discard. Stir in remaining fruit and serve over ice.

Chocolate Marble Chunk Ice Cream Sandwiches

I'm a sucker for a good ice cream sandwich (and, occasionally, even a mediocre store-bought one). I love the concept of commercial Chipwiches, chocolate chip cookies sandwiched with vanilla ice cream and coated with mini chips. But, let's face it, the individual components of a Chipwich aren't so hot. Bad chocolate chip cookies plus bad vanilla ice cream equals a bad product (though my husband Dicky thinks they are the pinnacle of frozen treats--I just smile and nod). So I decided to give the Chipwich my own spin. I started with one of my favorite cookies from my cookie book (The Good Cookie), Chocolate Marble Chunk Cookies. These are half chocolate, half regular chocolate chip cookie dough, baked together. They are loaded with chocolate chunks and pecans. Since there's so much action happening in the cookie, I decided to go with a very simple vanilla bean ice cream. For the ice cream, I use an excellent vanilla bean paste made by Nielsen-Massey, which eliminates the need to mess around with fresh vanilla beans. Once the sandwiches are assembled, wrap them individually in plastic, and store them in an airtight container in the freezer until ready to serve. You may never eat a Chipwich again (just kidding, Dicky!!).

Chocolate Marble Chunk Ice Cream Sandwiches

Makes about 12 sandwiches

Chocolate Marble Chunk Cookies (makes about 40 cookies):

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 large eggs

1/4 cup unsweetened alkalized (Dutch-processed) cocoa powder, sifted

12 ounces bittersweet or semisweet bar chocolate, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 3/4 cups pecan pieces

Vanilla Ice Cream (makes about 1 1/2 quarts):

1 1/2 cups whole milk

1 1/2 cup heavy cream, divided

3/4 cup granulated sugar

Pinch of salt

5 large egg yolks

1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or extract

Make the cookies:

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375°F. Have 2 ungreased baking sheets at hand.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and baking soda. Set aside.

3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, using the paddle attachment, beat the butter, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, salt, and vanilla extract at medium-high speed until light, about 2 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Add the flour mixture at low speed, mixing just until blended.

4. Transfer 1 3/4 cups of the dough to another bowl and set aside. Add the cocoa powder to the remaining dough in the mixer and mix on low speed until blended. Add half of the chocolate pieces and about half of the pecan pieces and mix until blended. Stir the remaining half of the chocolate and pecan pieces into the remaining light-colored dough. Fill half of a 1 tablespoon measure with the light dough, making it well rounded, not level. Fill the remaining half with the chocolate dough. Roll the doughs into a ball and place it on an ungreased baking sheet. Flatten it into a 1 1/2-inch disc with your palm (wet it first, to prevent sticking). Repeat to form more cookies, spacing them 2 inches apart. Bake, 1 sheet at a time, for 8 to 10 minutes, until the lighter dough just begins to color. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer the cookies to a wire rack and cool completely.

Make the ice cream:

5. In a large saucepan, combine the milk, 3/4 cup cream and sugar. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring just to dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat. In a bowl, whisk the yolks together with the salt. Whisk in about 1 cup of the hot milk mixture. Return this mixture to the remaining milk/cream in the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and reaches 180°F. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve and stir in the remaining 3/4 cup cream and the vanilla. Chill over an ice bath and refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight.

6. Process in ice cream machine according to manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze for at least 3 hours before assembling the sandwiches.

Assemble the sandwiches:

7. Arrange a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the underside of a cookie and top with another cookie. Gently press down on the top cookie to squeeze the ice cream to the edge of the cookies. Wrap in plastic wrap and freeze until serving.

Simply Strawberry

When strawberries are at their peak, they don’t need much embellishment. A little sugar, perhaps, and a little cream, and that’s it. And so it is with strawberry ice cream. I make a simple creme anglaise with half milk, half cream, then add some chopped strawberries that have been macerated with sugar. Mix it all with an immersion blender, and then process. Disarmingly simple, but oh-so-delicious.


Strawberry Ice Cream

Yield: about 2 quarts

1 1/2 cups milk

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1 1/4 cups granulated sugar, divided

4 large egg yolks

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 pint strawberries, washed, hulled and chopped

1. In a large saucepan, combine the milk, cream and 1/2 cup sugar. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring just to dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat. In a bowl, whisk the yolks with 1/2 cup sugar. Whisk in about 1 cup of the hot milk mixture. Return this mixture to the remaining milk/cream in the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and reaches 180°F. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve and stir in the vanilla. Chill over an ice bath and refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight.

2. Place the strawberries in a bowl and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Stir to coat, then cover and refrigerate for 45 minutes.

3. Drain strawberries and add the chilled custard. Blend with an immersion blender (or in batches in the blender) until strawberries are pureed. Process in ice cream machine according to manufacturer’s instructions. This ice cream is best served the day it's made--it gets a little icy the next day.

What a Peach!

I was at the farmers' market in Brooklyn Heights today (while everyone else on the planet was at the beach/country house/South of France), examining the heirloom tomato selection, which was quite impressive, when the peaches caught my eye, yet again. There were donut peaches, white peaches and yellow peaches, and they were pretty, plump and calling my name. I dropped the heirlooms (I did return later to pick up a few) and turned my attention to the peaches, considering the possibilites. Peach ice cream? I wasn't prepared for this--my ice cream bowl needed freezing. Pie? It was way too hot to be messing around with pastry for an extended period of time. I wanted something clean and quick, something to showcase the ripe, earthy flavors of my newly acquired peaches. I settled on peach galettes, which, as long as you have some puff pastry on hand, can be put together in mintues, and only require 30 minutes of baking time. They can also be assembled and frozen, ready for baking anytime you are.

Perfect Peach Galettes

Makes 4 servings

3 ripe yellow or white peaches

1 sheet puff pastry (homemade or frozen)

Turbinado sugar

Softened butter

Confectioners' sugar for sprinkling

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Roll the pastry out to 1/8-inch thick and, using a small plate as a guide, cut out four 5-inch circles from the dough. Place them on a plate and refrigerate while you cut the peaches.

2. Cut the peaches in half and remove the pit. Cut 1/2-inch wedges from each of the peach halves. Line a baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper. Remove one pastry circle from the refrigerator and arrange 4 peach wedges around the perimeter of the circle. Arrange 3 wedges inside the circle. Brush the peaches with softened butter and sprinkle with turbinado sugar. Place the galette on the baking sheet and continue assembling the remaining galettes. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the pastry is nicely browned.

3. Sprinkle the galettes with confectioner's sugar and serve warm with vanilla or dulce de leche ice cream.