Alright — I have about 37 seconds to tell you about these peaches before they’re out of season.
I thought I was done with peaches for the season — especially after making that crumble. But as I warned you, buying multiple peaches only to bite into mealy, bruised flesh is the worst. Not my idea of a good time.
I’d resigned myself to the end of peach season and was at peace — until my mom intervened. She reads the newspaper every day and cuts out recipes the old-fashioned way. Most of the time I file those clippings away or shrug them off, but this time I actually noticed a recipe for sugar roasted peaches. Then I saw they were roasted with bacon grease and my attention was immediately hijacked.
From there my brain went into full-on excitement mode: are these for lunch or dinner? Do they count as a meal with bacon? Can I make them right now? I pictured peaches coated in sugar, pan-seared in reserved bacon fat, finished with rosemary and more sugar, then topped with crunchy bacon bits. I could barely think about anything else until I made them.
I made them as soon as I could. Because I recently fell for a smoky blue cheese I discovered on a trip, I crumbled a little bit over the warm peaches. The combination — peaches, granulated and brown sugar, rosemary, bacon and a scattering of smoked blue cheese — is shockingly good. Sweet, salty, herbal and smoky all at once.
These are simple, fast and ideal when peaches are ripe but you want something with a little savory complexity. Serve them alone for a snack or dessert, spoon them over yogurt or ice cream, or toss them into a salad for a memorable mix of flavors. The house will smell amazing while they roast.
Sugar Roasted Peaches
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Ingredients
- 4 slices thick-cut bacon
- 4 large semi-ripe peaches, cut in half with pit removed
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 4 large sprigs fresh rosemary
- 2 ounces blue cheese, crumbled
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. In a bowl, mix together the sugars.
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Heat a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat and add bacon, frying until crisp and fat is rendered. Once crispy, remove with tongs and place on a paper towel to drain. Pour most of the bacon grease out of the skillet into a heat-safe jar, leaving a thin layer in the skillet. Reduce heat to medium-low.
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Sprinkle the cut side of the peaches with half of the sugar mixture, the salt and the pepper. Place them cut-side down in the skillet, tucking the rosemary sprigs among them. Cook for about 5 minutes, until the cut sides are caramelized and golden. Sprinkle the remaining sugar on the uncut sides, drizzle 1–2 teaspoons of the reserved bacon grease over the peaches, then transfer the skillet to the oven and roast for 10 minutes.
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Remove from the oven and flip the peaches so they are cut-side up. Roast another 5–10 minutes, until soft and fragrant. Remove from the oven, discard rosemary sprigs, and sprinkle on crumbled bacon and blue cheese. Serve immediately solo or with ice cream, yogurt or in salads.
Notes
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P.S. Your house will smell amazing while these roast.