food OUTSIDER Patreon chapters slowlivingactivism vanlife

Pan roasted apricots & cherries with honey lime mint sauce & a nutty crunch

June 13, 2019

Words: Sophie McKeand | Photography: Andy Garside

Walking the farmers markets in the south of France I cannot escape the mountains of apricots piled in plump furry pyramids of sunset-shades. Next to this, tables overflow, tumbling with shiny, fat cherries, their skins a deep wine-red promising to stain greedy fingers & lips. I’ve been honing this recipe over the past few weeks but finally it all comes together during a trip to the medieval French town of Mirepoix. Of course, fat & fabulous French apricots work best but pan roasting will still allow you to extract beautiful flavour from those smaller, less tasty versions found in the UK. 

Serves 4

For the fruit
4 apricots
24 cherries (6 per person)
1 tblsp light oil. I’m using huile de Caillette from the farmers market in Mirepoix, but you can use coconut oil or any other light oil.

For the nutty crunch
4tblsp walnuts 
4tblsp ground hazelnuts 
2tblsp sugar 

For the sauce
2 limes – juice & zest
1tblsp honey (or agave if vegan)
Big sprig of dried or fresh mint kept whole (whatever you have – they both work well)

A few fresh baby mint leaves for garnish

First, we start with the sauce. This is a real zinger and we’re going to condense the flavours quite a lot to add a bright, fresh burst in the mouth. The focus here is on getting as much flavour from this lovely produce as possible. Wash the limes, then in a small milk pan grate the zest and the add the juice, add 1 tablespoon of honey and a large sprig of mint. I’m buying fresh mint just now and leaving half on the dashboard of the van to dry in the sun. Put the pan on a low-ish heat and simmer for a few minutes. There’s no rush. Don’t turn up the heat or it’ll burn, just let it all simmer for about four minutes then leave to one side for the mint to infuse in the sauce (we’re going to remove the mint later). I love the citrus tang of lime but if this is too tart just do the zest of half a lime and add more honey instead. 

Next, we do the nutty crunch. Roughly chop the walnuts until they are the size of sunflower seeds then add to a thick-bottomed frying pan that is on a medium heat. I have a spun iron one from Netherton Foundry in Shropshire and it is absolutely the only pan you need in a small kitchen for pan roasting or frying (this is not an ad – I invested my own money in this pan and love it dearly). Making the topping takes time – if you rush it and make it too hot everything burns and spoils the dish, so take your time, you should get a lovely warm nutty smell from the pan, if it starts to smell sharp then take it off the heat for a few minutes and keep stirring. Once the walnuts are lightly toasted (about five minutes) add the ground hazelnuts. There is something about hazelnuts that always reminds me of France – perhaps it is that noisette is everywhere here. Keep stirring the nuts for 2-3 minutes until you get a lovely hazelnut aroma. Don’t let anything burn. Finally add the sugar and keep stirring. This is the nice, slow bit. The sugar will burn easily so gently keep everything moving, letting the sugar melt into the nuts. This takes a good 5 minutes or so. You’ll know when it’s done because the sugar is no longer crystallised but has become a deep golden brown along with the nuts. If you’re not sure keep going, it can take a good while, but it’s worth it. Play some chilled jazz and just enjoy the simplicity of watching the sugar metamorphose in your pan. When this is done, tip onto a plate and leave to one side to cool.  

Wash the fruit then halve the apricots with a sharp knife & take out the stone. Tumble the fruit in the oil. Heat your pan so that it’s at its hottest then place the apricots in cut side down and turn the heat down to medium. Leave them for about two minutes to get a seared crust on the bottom then flip and cook for another two minutes. Put the apricots on a plate and cover to keep warm. Turn up the heat, add the cherries to the pan and shuffle them around occasionally for two minutes.
If you want to thicken/intensify your sauce tip it into the big pan and stir for a minute or two on a medium heat. I also wring out the mint leaves to get every last drop as you should only have around a teaspoon of sauce per plate.

Plate everything up immediately while the fruit is still warm. Using two halves of apricot and six cherries per person, add a generous line of nutty topping, then dot the lime sauce around the edges of the plate – don’t put this on the fruit because you’ll overpower the beautiful flavour, less is definitely more with this. Serve immediately.

This makes a light lunch or supper, or a lovely afternoon tea. Serve as it is or with fromage blanc or ice cream and either a cold summery glass of white wine or a nice cup of black earl grey tea with a squeeze of lemon (and maybe some honey). 

Apart from the honey (and any cream) this is vegan so the choice is yours. 

If you make this recipe send me a photo or tag it on Instagram so I can share it in my stories? 

You Might Also Like

No Comments

Leave a Reply