I found myself with a lot of peaches at home and, before they went bad, I thought: why not make a dessert or a jam? The jam idea vanished immediately due to the recent sweltering heat… standing at the stove was out of the question! Even turning on the oven was out of the question.
So I opted for a cool dessert that already makes you want to dive in with a spoon just by looking at it. And thus this delicious Peach Charlotte was born: a fresh, aromatic and tasty cake, simple to prepare yet at the same time elegant.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Budget-friendly
- Rest time: 3 Hours
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 10
- Cooking methods: No-bake
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Summer
Ingredients
- 14 oz ladyfingers (savoiardi)
- 2 cups pastry cream
- 3/4 cup sweetened whipping plant-based cream
- 3 1/3 cups peaches (pitted)
- 1 tbsp maraschino (liqueur)
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup sugar
Preparation
To prepare the peach charlotte, start with the pastry cream: make it following your recipe or a tried-and-true one, then let it cool completely.
In the meantime prepare the maraschino soak: pour the water and the sugar into a small saucepan and heat until the sugar is completely dissolved. Add the maraschino, stir and remove from the heat. Let it cool.
Whip the sweetened cream and keep it in the refrigerator until use. (The cream should be very cold, ideally after at least 12 hours in the fridge.)
Wash the peaches, cut them in half and remove the pits. Cut them into thin pieces (about 1/4 inch thick). You should obtain about 1 2/3 cups of peaches for the filling. Keep the remaining peaches for decoration.
Move on to assembly: take a 9-inch (22 cm) springform pan and spread a light layer of whipped cream on the bottom.
Arrange the ladyfingers vertically along the sides of the pan, forming a crown. Quickly dip other ladyfingers in the maraschino soak and place them on the bottom to create the first layer.
Add a generous layer of pastry cream and a layer of peaches.
Repeat the layers: soaked ladyfingers, cream and peaches. Finish with a final layer of ladyfingers.
Cover the surface with the whipped cream, smoothing it well with a spatula up to the edge of the pan.
Decorate as you like with the reserved peaches.
Let firm up in the freezer for at least 2 hours or in the refrigerator for 4–5 hours.
Before serving, take the cake out of the fridge about 40 minutes in advance. Open the springform ring and remove it gently so as not to damage the structure.
Tips and storage
You can flavor the pastry cream with a hint of vanilla extract.
The peach charlotte keeps in the fridge, covered, for 2 days. Or in the freezer for 5–7 days.
