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SUMMER FRUIT COMPOTES Only at this time of year could you think of abandoning chocolate as the favorite dessert. Summer fruits are such a sensory delight of the season, a reward at the end of the heat: perfumed, delicate, blushing, heavy with juice, golden, purple or bright red, sweet and sometimes tart - they cannot be resisted. I keep a flat, woven basket on my kitchen table in which apricots, peaches, nectarines and plums lie in a single layer, ripening day by day. A whiff of sugary, flowery fragrance lets me know when they're ready. This is the dessert of choice every summer day, and the snack as well. I watch my children grab fruit as they cruise by, and think how lucky we are to have this luxury in such easy abundance. But we all like a change sometimes, and when we want more of a dessert-dessert, I make peach cobbler or plum and nectarine crisp, or an old-fashioned cherry pie. And though the perfection of a ripe, juice-laden white peach cannot be improved upon, it can be combined with other flavors and textures for some fun and variety. One thing I like very much is the slight transformation of fresh summer fruit into a chilled compote. I don't cook the fruit, I simply combine it with a light home-made syrup, infused with the delicate flavor of vanilla, mint, citrus, or spice. The fruit is fresh, and the syrups are thin and clear, made with little sugar so they don't have the cloying heaviness of old-fashioned compotes. I use slices of peaches, nectarines or plums, then perhaps snip in a few slivers of mint leaves or add a few drops of lemon juice, and ladle the icy compote into goblets or dessert bowls. That's about all there is to it, and it makes a delicious and refreshing dessert, beautiful at the end of a summer day. For a more substantial version, I serve a scoop of vanilla ice cream in a shallow, rimmed bowl, and pour the ice-cold compote around it. And for an even fancier version, thin biscotti, sugar wafers or chocolate lace cookies can be served alongside. These are desserts in which the purity of the fruit still comes through, but in pleasant company. Even the supremely elegant white peach does not always want to be alone. The same compote will transform a sponge cake into a near cousin of a trifle. Drizzle the infused syrup over a slice of spongecake or pound cake until it is moist and heavy, then surround the cake by the macerated fruit. Add a spoonful of whipped cream or a small scoop of vanilla ice cream and there you are - heaven on a plate. For a lower-fat but very appealing dessert, I serve a wedge of thick yogurt cheese in a pool of cool syrup with the sliced fruit. It's one of those dishes that can also work well at brunch, in the same way that a biscuit cobbler can be dessert one evening and breakfast the next morning. My favorite compotes this summer have been mixed sweet melons in an orange and mint syrup made with handfuls of fresh mint leaves from my herb garden, and a combination of stone fruits and berries in a white wine, lemon and cardamom syrup. I also love the simplest one of all, a vanilla bean syrup over sliced white peaches, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. It's a knockout. See " New Recipes " for a couple of syrup formulas that will likely start you on experiments of your own. The syrups are incredibly easy to make, and keep perfectly well for days or even weeks in a closed jar in the refrigerator, so you can be ready to throw together an inspired fruit dessert on a moment's notice. |