PRETTY AS A PICTURE CHERRY PEACH PIE: (ARCHIVE) Indulgence, contains alcohol

Peaches & Cherry in a eye-catching puff pastry envelope ...                                                                                                   first published 9/19 as  Peach & Cherry Jalousie

Nothing like alcohol-soaked soft fruit in puff pastry (with no-alcohol opt)
'Very good!' 'subtle but unmistakeable taste of whiskey & cinnamon'

Take this eye-catching puff pastry tart stuffed with peaches & cherries on a tray, to a picnic.  

A gorgeous treat - known as a Jalousie - the tart is a French frippery modelled after parallel window blinds.  67's twist is in the flavouring: cinnamon whiskey.  It's food for the gods.

There are 3 choices of pastry: frozen, ready-rolled or home-made rough puff .

FROZEN BUTTER PASTRY* needs planning: at least 36 hours before needed, take it out of the freezer and put it in the fridge.  A package contains two 2 X 8.5x10inch/ 22x26 cm rectangles.

READY ROLLED puff pastry sheets** don't require defrosting and are ready to go whenever you are.  They come in a large single sheet and costs more than frozen.  Unless you're making a half-sized jalousie, you'll probably need 2.  A larger jalousie will need more fruit for the filling and probably an extra 10-15 mins baking. 

MAKE YOUR OWN home-made rough puff is to die for...but maybe not in a heatwave.  Best saved for autumn/winter when the warmth of the kitchen and delicious smells wrap round like a blanket.    

 
Conscious of the cost of living crisis, this recipe focuses on frozen pastry.  But depending on the size of the crowd and the budget, two ready-rolled puff pastry sheets (see instructions above) will work well, too.  

Prep for the pie starts the night before serving.  It's best eaten as soon as possible out of the oven.

Cost: £5.00'ish (2022)
Makes: 4-6 portions

Ingreds:
   1 pkt frozen puff pastry (2 x 200gm) defrosted* 

   2.5 good-sized peaches/nectarines, peeled, cut in 16 wedges
   120gm/4.2gm cherries, de-stemmed, halved and pits removed

   3-4 tbsp cinnamon flavoured whiskey, divided (opt) OR whisky, brandy. orange or grape juice mixed with 1/8 tsp cinnamon 

   4-6 tbsp ground almonds, rice flour or finely milled breadcrumbs  

   1 egg

Icing (opt):
   juices drained from fruit
   1/2 cup of icing sugar    
Blend until smooth and flowing; if too thick, add a bit of milk or a little more alcohol

Method:

1. The night before: remove pastry from freezer, place in bottom of fridge: put fruit in separate bowls; stir in alcohol (or juice); cover; refrigerate 
2. On the day: preheat oven to 220c/210fan/220f
3. Beat egg with 1 tbsp water; set aside 
4. Leaving one layer of pastry in the fridge; roll out the other to a 9inch/23cm square; place on a baking sheet lined with silicone mat or greaseproof paper; brush a 1 inch/2.5cm border with the egg wash
5. Sprinkle a layer of ground almonds within the egg washed border 
6. Drain peach slices & cherry halves, reserving juice; dry them with a paper towel
7. Arrange peach slices neatly inside the border
   
   
   
8.  Scatter cherry halves over.   If you think the fruit needs it, sprinkle over 1-2 tbsp sugar 
9. Take the second piece of pastry, fold it in half lengthwise;with a sharp knife, slice the centre at an angle
   
10. Open out and spread over pastry base and fruit; seal edges with the tines of a fork (if done properly the top layer will appear as chevrons; 67's has stripes because the second layer of pastry wasn't cold enough and the chevrons stretched!)
11. Brush all over with egg wash
    
12. Bake 10mins, reduce heat to 190c/375; bake a further 15mins until golden, moving tray from front to back for even browning
13. Meanwhile whisk 2 tbsp leftover fruit juices with 1/3-1/2 cup icing sugar, adding a little more liquid if necessary - tablespoon by tablespoon - until it's smooth and flowing
14. When jalousie is cooked, rest in tray 5 mins then slide - on its mat or greaseproof paper - onto a wire rack; cool another 5 mins
15. Drizzle icing over the jalousie; serve with ice cream, whipped cream or yoghurt flavoured with vanilla and a little sugar

Comments:

'My lodger and I shared this and even though I'd burnt it badly at the edges reheating it, we both thought it was very very good.' Political agent

'The warmer you eat this, the better.' Retired writer

Tips: 

• puff pastry from supermarkets like Sainsbury's, Asda etc are cheaper than Waitrose & M&S but the Blogger has not tested them
• bargain nectarines and peaches** are maddening -  getting them all to ripen at the same time isn't easy and they go from ripe to oversoft easily.  But place them, without touching, in a brown paper bag stabbed with a few holes and they ripen quickly and evenly in 3 days
• to help loosen peach/nectarine skins, drop into a bowl of boiling water for 2-3 mins or until skins come away from the flesh a little;  remove, plunge into ice water; a very sharp paring knife will make the task easier
• 67 doesn't have a cherry pitting device but cherries are sometimes so fat and juicy, they are easily halved and the stones easily loosened with a sharp knife or end of a paper clip

*Waitrose own brand

**M&S

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This recipe has been developed by B  Lee/ Bright Sun Enterprises and may not be reproduced, in any form, without the author's written permission.