Peach crisp with maple cream sauce

From The Pioneer Woman Cooks

I don’t know what to say. This is Gee’s recipe, and it’s so good, I…I…I feel like crying. Hold on, I’m going to go have a really good, cleansing cry.

I’m back. That was awesome. And so is this dadgum dessert, people. Make it now, or at the very least, by 2074. Deal? Deal.

The Cast of Characters: Fresh Peaches, Flour, Sugar, Light Brown Sugar, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Salt, Butter, Lemon, Maple Syrup, Whipping Cream, Light Corn Syrup. How could this go wrong?

Start with one cup flour.

Add to a medium bowl.

Now add 1/2 cup sugar…

And 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar.

Now add 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon…

Now measure 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg…

And add it to the bowl.

Now add 1/4 teaspoon salt. (I used Kosher because earlier in the day I’d accidentally put my regular salt in the sink full of dishwater. Welcome to my life.) Regular salt is fine.

Now, with a fork…

Stir the mixture together.

Now take one stick (1/4 pound or 8 tablespoons or 1/2 cup) regular butter.

And cut it into bits. This actually works much better if the butter is straight out of the fridge. This was a little soft because I’d left a sack of groceries in my car for two hours because I have a rebellious streak and like to leave one or two sacks of groceries in the car when I get home. Issues.

In any event, cut the butter into small pieces…

And add it into the bowl.

With a fork (or pastry cutter, whatever makes your skirt fly up), begin mixing the butter with the flour mixture.

Just gradually mush in the butter…

Until the butter is evenly mixed in. (If the butter had been cold, it would resemble coarse meal.)

Now peel and slice 5 to 6 cups fresh peaches. Best to use peaches that aren’t overly ripe or soft.

Now take 1/2 lemon…

And grate off the zest.

I’ve sung the praises of this microplane zester before; there’s nothing like it in the world. I’m thinking of proposing.

Add the zest to the peaches…

And squeeze in the juice from the lemon half.

Now take real maple syrup…(I’ve never used pancake syrup in this recipe, but it would probably do in a pinch.)

Add 2 tablespoons into the peaches.

Now stir the peaches well.

Now take a relatively small baking pan. This one’s about eight inches long, or you can use a 9-inch square pan. Anything is fine, as long as it isn’t huge.

Pour the peaches into the baking dish.

Now take the crumb topping…

And start sprinkling it over the top…

Until you’ve used it all.

Lightly even out mixture with a fork, but no need to get it perfect.

Now cover tightly with foil and pop into a 350-degree oven for fifteen minutes.

After fifteen minutes, remove the foil and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes, or until top is crisp (get it?) and brown. Sometimes I let it bake for 25 minutes or so, then crank on the broiler for a couple of minutes just to get the top nice and bubbly and crisp (get it?) If you do this, though, DO NOT walk away from the oven to answer the doorbell or change laundry loads. You’ll never forgive yourself.

While the peach crisp is baking, it’s time to make the maple cream sauce. (You can also make this earlier in the day, because it needs to be served chilled. I’ll tell you about my shortcut later, though.) Start with whipping cream (i.e. heavy cream.)

Measure 1 1/2 cups…

And pour into a small saucepan.

Now take that good ol’ maple syrup again…(Never mind the fingerprints. It’s all that butter, man.)

Add 5 tablespoons into the cream.

Now take light corn syrup…

Add 3 tablespoons.

Stir together and cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly, until thickened and reduced by about 1/3. This should take about 15 minutes. No need to stir vigorously or anything; just enough to prevent sauce from sticking to the pan.

When you’re finished, it should look like this. And DO NOT taste it. It’s evil and lethal and rude.

Now. You can chill it in the fridge until it’s cold and thick. OR, you can take this shortcut: set the saucepan into a small bowl of ice. The ice will melt a little and turn to ice water, and as you stir the sauce, it will cool and thicken. Within about fifteen minutes, it’s cold!

Here’s what the peach crisp looks like when it’s all done.

And here it is, up close and personal.

When you’re ready to serve, just scoop out a nice big spoonful…(and it’s best to serve it warm.)

And place it on a plate.

Now take this deliciously cold, creamy, sweet, evil, decadent, ridiculous, sinful, ecstasy-inducing maple cream sauce…

And start drizzling it all over the peach crisp.

Don’t be shy…

Really let it flow.

I’m sorry, I know this is cruel.

But I believe in full disclosure. I just don’t think it would be fair for me to hold back any of these photos. I want you to know what you’re getting into.

I’m all about keepin’ it real, you know.