Funny old summer, but hey, the cherries are here. Apricots, too, mostly from Turkey or France. It is unusual to come across a ripe apricotby chance. I buy any that look as though they might be worth a punt and ripen them at home. Asunny windowsill; in a paper bag with a ripe banana to encourage them along in the airing cupboard if your memory can be relied upon; anywhere that is warm but not humid to encourage them to turn from cotton wool to luscious. The two fruits work beautifully together, too.
A fine apricot, flushed with scarlet and tiny brown dots, its flesh almostlike jelly, has the advantage over its cousin the peach by having asnap ofacidity, most pronounced when the fruit is dried. (A French farmer once told me that his main client, asupermarket chain, kept pushing him to breed apricots that were largerand sweeter. A clear case of someone not understanding the true magic of the fruit.)
Cherries are a natural partner forham. You can pickle the fruit using white-wine vinegar, sugar, cloves andpeppercorns. The fresh fruit canbe added to awarm Cumberland-style sauce of redcurrant jelly, citrus and mustard, but they shouldn't be overlooked as araw fruit either. I halve them, discard their pesky stones (don't assume for a minute your guests will want to count them,tinker-tailor style, this isn't cherry pie) then tossthem with avery small amount of white-wine vinegar and the merestpinch of sugar, and leave to marinate for 10minutes or longerthen toss with cherry tomatoesand serve with ham.Better,I think, is to use salamior coppa, thinly sliced, tucked among the fruits. If you can find agood peppery salami, then all the more interesting.
Even the dullest small apricot is transformed into an exquisite little morsel with the introduction of sugarand heat. Poach the fruit with sugar and orange. Bake it with honeyand lemon. Musing over something toadd both sugar and teasing sharpness to a box of apricotsthis week, we hit on the idea of simmering them with elderflower cordial and orange juice.The effectwas astounding, and the fruit swelledandglowed.
The spice Iappreciate most with theapricot is cardamom and the pairing works just as magically in adessert. I added the spice, podded and finely ground, to abutterscotch sauce and spooned it over the poached fruits. Over the top, perhaps, but glorious nevertheless.
Cherries, tomatoes and salami
Sweet sharp fruits make a fine addition to asummer lunch. The salad will be at its best if the cherries are cold and the tomatoes not overripe, maybe even slightly sharp. It can also served as a starter. Mozzarella would work well in this salad, too. Serves 2.
cherries 150g
cherry tomatoes 150g
tarragon vinegar a little
salami 100g, a good peppery one
Halve and stone the cherries. Cut the tomatoes in half then toss them with the cherries. Sprinkle a little of the vinegar over and set aside for no longer than half an hour. The fruits don't need to be seasoned.
Slice the salami thinly, remove the skin, then tuck among the cherries and tomatoes.
Apricot brioche, cardamom butterscotch sauce
I make these with brioche buns, one per person. Unless you make your own, they are not especially easy tofind in theshops. A neat alternative is to cut thickslices from a brioche loaf, the sortavailable from the major supermarkets. This is an unashamedly richdessert. Serves 4.
For the sauce:
double cream 150ml
green cardamom pods 15
light muscovado sugar 150g
For the buns:
apricots 8
elderflower cordial 8 tbsp (120ml)
orange juice 180ml
brioche buns 4
Halve the apricots, discard the stones, thenroughly chop half of them. Stir together the elderflower cordial and orange juice, then add the apricots and let them cook for 15-20 minutes over a moderate heat until soft.
Set the oven at 200C/gas mark 6. Slice adeep cross in the top of each bun, cuttingdown almost to the base. Push thesides in with your thumb and fingers toopen the buns out a little, then stuff them loosely with the chopped apricots. Put the stuffed buns in a shallow baking dish, tuck the halved fruits among them, then pour the juice and cordial over them and bake for 15-20 minutes.
While the fruit-stuffed brioche bake, smash the cardamom pods open then grindthe black seeds inside to a powder. Put the cream and muscovado sugar in a saucepan, add the crushed cardamom and slowly heat, simmering for a few minutes. Set aside for a few minutes for the cardamom to infuse with the cream.
When the brioche are ready, transfer themto serving dishes. Tuck the apricots around them, then spoon over the orange and elderflower syrup. Pour the cardamombutterscotch sauce around thebuns and serve.
Cherries with rose syrup
Rose syrup, very different to rosewater, is a delicately flavoured sugar syrup and is available from Middle Eastern grocers. It is sweet – only a little is needed. Serves 4.
cherries 200g
apricots 8
sugar to taste
rose syrup
Stalk and stone the cherries and put them in a bowl. Halve, stone, then thickly slice the apricots. Scatter over a little sugar, nomorethan 1 tsp, then a few drops of rosesyrup. Toss very gently, then leave for 20 minutes or so before serving.
Email Nigel at nigel.slater@observer.co.uk
