Just as I can say I stretched the finnish pulla to the max with the stuffed french toast and caramelized apple bread pudding I can say the pandoro, that unbelievably good-tasting golden sweet bread was put to good use with this peach and blackberry brown betty. Like using the whole chicken, there was nothing left unused.
First came the pandoro, and then came the inevitable leftover bread, because a girl can only eat so much and I could not give as a gift the one with a missing slice, because of the picture that was taken and also because I ate it. And then another slice.
As for these croutons, my first idea was to use them over ice cream, to add some crunch. Then I thought about a fruit gratin. But I still didn't quite know how to put that together in a way that I was satisfied with the result.
My second idea was a bread pudding, but my favorite of favorites, the one with caramelized apples posted last week, I had already made for Christmas, then there was the orange almond with french bread and Julia Child's cinnamon toast bread pudding. There were enough puddings already, don't you think?
I've always been intrigued by some names like buckle or betty or, many years ago, cobbler. To me, they gave nothing away as to what the dessert might be and they all included fruit. Now I only have the buckle left to tackle.
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| The first layer of croutons and fruit |
By the way, I'm also stretching the fresh summer fruit into everything I can possibly make, something I never did before this blog was born.
It started with the fresh cherry custard pie, then the sweet, incredible surprise of brown sugar ice cream with caramelized fruit made in the wok, and on to a chocolate raspberry pie, a gluten-free plum hazelnut upside down cake, the peach chutney, a fig honey compote (for a guest post coming soon), fig jam with tequila and some peaches in vanilla syrup that I canned two days ago.
I can rest now.
blackberry peach brown betty
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Desserts
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
A beautiful, old fashioned dessert with fresh fruit and stale sweet bread.
Ingredients
- 4 cups about Pandoro croutons (see above)
- 1 ½ pounds fresh peaches, I used 3
- 1 ½ cups fresh blackberries
- ¾ cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- Pinch of salt
- Zest of 1 orange
- Zest of 1 lemon
- Juice of 2 oranges
- 2 tablespoons water
- Fresh cream (to serve)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325º.
- Peel and cut peaches in slices. Mix sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in a small bowl.
- In another small bowl mix orange juice and water.
- You will make 3 layers of croutons and 2 layers of fruit mixed with the sugar, juice and zest, so divide accordingly.
- Put ⅓ of the croutons in the bottom of a pyrex dish. Place half of the fruit on top, sprinkle with half the sugar and half each of the zests, and finally pour half the juice with a spoon all over the fruit.
- Repeat with croutons, fruit, sugar, zest and juice ending with a layer of pandoro croutons.
- Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until very golden and easily pierced with a knife.
- Let cool a bit and serve hot or warm with cold cream.
- Keep refrigerated, covered with plastic wrap, for 2 or 3 days.
Notes
Bread: I used pandoro croutons, which I make by dicing leftover bread and baking it in a single layer, in a low oven, 220º, for about 1 hour or as long as it needs to dry and become golden. Bake the bread slowly so the croutons stay dry and crunchy. You don't want toasted on the outside and soft on the inside. You can easily substitute challah, brioche or any other sweet egg bread. Or even cinnamon bread.
Keywords: brown betty
This is beatiful Paula - the fruit so fresh and colorful! No, I haven't made the pandoro yet. Mark looked at the number of eggs and (considering my diet) suggested we wait till Easter. I reluctantly agreed... I can't wait to check out some of the links. The amaretto sounds amazing and anything homemade is better than store bought! ~ David
This recipe brings back memories of when I lived in Texas...summer with peaches and blackberries. I keep forgetting to let you know that I like your china. I have the same pattern at our summer cottage in Maine and love it.
Paula...talk about kismet with slightly different endings! I'm so sorry you left your 'guy' behind. You only hope the people who moved in after you (I'm assuming your ex didn't stay there..or else you would have gotten it back) were bread bakers and knew what a goldmine you left behind - instead of throwing it out. 'Herbie' was so strong, that I didn't even have to refresh the amount I removed for recipes - the dough would triple in size before the deflate and shape, and then the oven spring..WOW. It takes a good amount of time and constant baking and feeding to get a killer SD starter, so losing it is like losing, well..gold. 🙁
That said, I LOVE brown betty 'any fruit' and yours looks flippin' amazing with the peaches and blackberries, but the best part, the pandoro croutons - brilliant! This is a must make for me 🙂
I love fresh fruit recipes in the Winter! It's a little bit of summer during these cold months 🙂 Looks delicious...
This looks absolutely amazing! I love the sweet-tangy pairing of peaches and blackberries. Can't wait to try this!
Looks amazing! The more summer fruit the better I can't wait for it to be summer here.