I love to try spices in less commonly known uses.  The peach plays well with different herbs and spices: basil and rosemary are more commonly known.  But not many people in the Midwest US have had peaches this way.  Garam Masala is the spice blend I use in my peach crisp.  You can purchase a variety of mixes with the spice name, but I prefer ones with coriander as the first ingredient.  Coriander is wonderful with fruit.  Garam Masala also has cardamom and cinnamon that are common to fruit dishes, and cumin and black pepper that are a bit more unusual.

I made this dessert to take to a dear friend’s house for dinner.  I know she loves peaches and is open to new flavors.  (She once bought a cookbook with the intent of having me make dishes for her from it.) 🙂  To go with the peaches are pecans and a crisp top made with an oatmeal addition to the flour, sugar, and butter topping.  I also add a bit more Garm Masala to the crisp topping.

Peaches can be juicy so I use a small amount of lemon and lime juice and add a bit of cornstarch.  Bake this dish several hours in advance to allow it to cool completely or the juices will not set up and you will have a “runny” dessert (but it will still taste delicious).

It was a big hit at dinner and she has been patiently waiting for me to post the recipe.  It will become a summer staple at out house.  Hope you try it and love it as much as our group does.

You’ll need:

Topping:

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup old fashion rolls oats (not quick oats)

2/3 cup raw sugar or brown sugar

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp Garam Masala

6 Tbs chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Filling:

2 lbs of firm peaches (6-7 medium) cut into 1/2 inch wedges

1 Tbs each lemon juice and lime juice

1 1/2 cups pecans, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup raw sugar or brown sugar

1 tsp corn starch

3/4 tsp Garam Masala

1/4 tsp kosher salt

 

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a medium bowl, combine dry topping ingredients and stir well.  Add butter pieces and mix with fingers or pastry cutter until no dry spots remains and mixture has small pea size clumps.  Set aside.

Grease a 10 inch baking dish.  In a large bowl, toss peaches with lemon and lime juice to coat.  In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients then sprinkle over peaches.  Stir to coat.  Pour peach mixture into baking dish.  Sprinkle with topping and spread evenly. Bake crisp until topping is golden brown and juices are thick and bubbling around the edges, 25–35 minutes.  Allow crisp to cool several hours before serving to allow juices to set.

Serve with topping of choice.  Enjoy!