Peaches in Chartreuse Jelly

Peaches in Chartreuse Jelly
Recipe by Dana McCauley

Makes 6 servings

Peaches in Chartreuse Jelly was the 3rd option for the Sweets course on Titanic's 1st class menu. Confession time...I did not like this. I disliked almost everything from the colour to the texture to the taste of this sweet dish. What I did like were the peaches poached in the syrup with the lemon, cinnamon and clove. I would have preferred to just eat the peaches with some ice cream on the side. I think it's the Chartreuse that turned me off. It's a sharp and medicinal tasting liqueur that I would have replace with a peach or other fruit liqueur. But, if you have a taste for Chartreuse, then you'll enjoy this dish. :)

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients:
3 large cling stone peaches
4 cups water
2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 cinnamon stick
3 whole cloves
Fresh lemon balm leaves or edible flowers

Chartreuse Jelly:
5 teaspoons powdered flavourless gelatin
2 cups water
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 cup Chartreuse

Directions:
1.Chartreuse Jelly: Dissolve the gelatin in 1 cup of water.In a small pot, bring the remaining cup to a boil. Add the sugar and stir until it is entirely dissolved. Remove from heat and allow to cool for about 20 minutes. Add the Chartreuse and the gelatin and stir to combine. Pour into a 9 x 13 inch glass baking dish lined with waxed paper; refrigerate until completely set.

2. Meanwhile, immerse the peaches in a large pot of boiling water for about 30 seconds; then transfer them to ice water. Slip off the skins; halve and gently remove the stones.

3. In a large pot, combine the water and sugar; cook over medium heat stirring gently until sugar is dissolved. Bring to a boil and cook for one minute or until syrup is clear. Add lemon juice, cinnamon stick and cloves.

4. Add the prepared peaches making sure they are entirely immersed; cut a piece of parchment slightly smaller than the pot and place over the top of the peaches to make sure the remain submerged.

5.Bring the syrup to a boil and reduce the heat to medium-low and poach the peaches gently for 6 minutes or until soft (they should be easy to cut into with a spoon). Allow the peaches to cool in the syrup. This may be stored for 24 hours in the refrigerator.

6.To serve, turn out the jelly onto a cutting board and cut half into even little squares; the remaining half should be cut into decorative shapes using a cookie cutter. Plate the cut squares onto the centre of a flat plate, arranging the jelly shapes around the edges. Slice peaches from one end to almost the other, and fan it out onto a bed of jelly. Garnish with edible flowers or lemon balm leaves.