National Peach Melba Day

Peach Melba is a dessert that was created in the 1890s by famous French chef Auguste Escoffier. He created this dessert for world renowned Australian opera singer Dame Nellie Melba (hence the name). For the dessert Escoffier poached peaches, sliced them in half, added vanilla ice cream, and later, raspberry sauce. Initially it was created without the raspberry sauce and served with a beautiful swan ice sculpture – a nod to Dame Nellie’s appearance in the opera of Lohengrin.  It can be made with other fruits, other flavors of ice cream and sauces – the combinations are endless.

Five Fun Facts:

1. Peach melba is a dessert that serves up poached peaches with vanilla ice cream and raspberry sauce.
2. To get the skin of peaches for this dessert they need to be put into a pot of boiling water, plunged immediately into ice water, drained, and then take the skin off.
3. Escoffier also created melba toast in Dame Nellie’s honor!
4. Dame Nellie Melba was an opera soprano who performed often in London’s Covent Garden and in New York’s Metropolitan Opera.
5. Dame Nellie was afraid that eating ice cream would damage her vocal cords, but the raspberry sauce in Escoffier’s dessert warmed up the ice cream thus enabling her to enjoy ice cream with no risk to her voice.

Five Peach Recipes:

1. Peach Muffin With Streusel Topping– this muffin is made with canola oil – it wakes up the flavors in food. It allows you to bake healthier without compromising taste or texture.
2. Roasted Peaches with Mint and Raspberry Sauce–Summer peaches are sweet and juicy, they almost never need anything but themselves. On the other hand, a bit of sugar and herbs and the heat of an oven intensify the fruit flavor.
3. Grilled Peach Sundaes-Fruit on the grill? Most definitely! Try grilling other fruit or pineapple too!
4. Roasted Peach Sundaes – This easy dessert satisfies a sweet tooth while adding another serving of fruit, contributing vitamins and antioxidants.
5. Sauteed Peach Ice Cream Torte – Starting with a base of pre-made ice cream, this torte is a snap to make. The addition of ripe peaches and refreshing mint make it a standout dessert you will want to make again and again.

Click for some more greatPeach recipes.