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You are here: Home / Recipes / Dessert / Grilled nectarines with saffron and lavender syrup

Grilled nectarines with saffron and lavender syrup

by Jeanne Horak on March 21, 2012 23 Comments in Dessert, Gluten-free, South African products

Nectarines in Saffron Lavender Syrup © J Horak-Druiff 2012

When I first got to the UK in 2000, I embarked on a culinary voyage of discovery.  Suddenly, berries that had cost half a month’s salary in South Africa (or simply weren’t available) were available on every supermarket shelf – and sometimes even available for free in the hedgerows around our house!  The stuff I had always been told was spinach was finally correctly identified to me as Swiss Chard.  I caught my first glimpse of Jerusalem artichokes, Spring Greens and Brussels sprouts sold on stems (also broad beans, although I think this is more because my father refused to eat them so my mother didn’t buy them, rather than their unobtainability!).  I was in heaven.  It took a year or two for the novelty to wear off a little and to start noticing the things that weren’t there:  gem squashes, an abundance of prickly pears or guavas, hanepoot grapes, and yellow cling peaches.  Yup, it didn’t take me long to start pining for South African fruit.

Of course, Outspan oranges have long been known outside South Africa as we have been exporting them for decades.  I was slightly taken aback in 2000 (six years after the demise of Apartheid) when a friend in London told me that many people she knew were still hesitant about buying them because they had grown up in an era when boycotting Outspan was a form of protest against the Apartheid regime.  I, on the other hand, searched the citrus shelves at the supermarket and made damn sure that I bought South African citrus wherever I could. And as soon as the nice middle-class English people realised that they did not have to boycott South African oranges any more, a new reason to avoid South African fruit in England presented itself:  food miles.

The orthodoxy goes something like this:  if I buy a packet of green beans from Farmer Brown who farms on the outskirts of my town, then I am doing the planet a favour.  No carbon emissions from any aeroplane, shop or truck were generated to transport the beans to me, so therefore buying Farmer Brown’s beans is fundamentally a better choice than buying green beans imported from Kenya.  The Kenyan beans obviously had to be flown here, generating a ton of food miles and carbon emissions, meaning that to buy them is to contribute to the demise of the planet. Simple, right?  Well, actually, no.  If Farmer Brown used chemical fertiliser and the Kenyan farm used natural manure fertiliser; or if Farmer Brown used a mechanical harvester and the Kenyan farm harvested by hand; or if Farmer Brown’s beans were first trucked to a packing plant in Scotland before hitting the shop shelves – then the picture becomes far less clear, and many of the benefits of Farmer Brown’s proximity are effectively cancelled out.  In fact, we are increasingly realising that food miles are an overly simplistic measurement of which foods, on balance, harm the planet and which don’t:  you have to take a holistic view of a product’s total environmental impact, from growing it to transporting it to storing it to cooking it.  And that’s before you bring the human factor into the equation.

 

SAFruitCollage2

 

South Africa produces massive amounts of fruit for the (predominantly European) export market.  Being in the Southern hemisphere, it means South Africa’s summer fruits are at their best when the UK is in the depths of winter, making South Africa a popular source of fruit for UK supermarkets.  It’s also the closest southern-hemisphere port to the UK where fruit is grown on an industrial scale, so produce does not travel as far as, say, things grown in Chile.  The other big bonus is that well over 90% of South African fruit is shipped to the UK rather than air-freighted – and shipping is a far greener option.  But most importantly for me, a thriving export market for South African fruit provides considerable direct benefits to the South African fruit farming industry and the national economy.  According to a 2006 study, over one million people in rural Africa are supported by the fresh fruit and vegetable exports to the UK.  In South Africa, a third of a million people are employed in the deciduous fruit industry alone and for every farm worker there are, on average, 4 dependents that rely on the fruit industryto provide education, housing, health and social care. And because growing fruit is a very labour intensive industry that can never be totally mechanised, an increase in the demand for our fruit almost inevitably means an increase in job creation in the growing, packing and supply chain in South Africa – something which the country badly needs. And as European shoppers become more demanding about how their food was produced, this in turn places pressure on South African fruit farmers to improve ethical farming practices, particularly in relation to uplifting the working conditions and rights of farm workers.  In 2011 a number of South African producers and exporters signed up for an ethical trade programme to improve the working conditions of fruit farm labourers, and as a result of the Government’s black empowerment policies there has been some progress (albeit slow!) in providing management and ownership opportunities to previously disadvantaged members of the workforce.  So when I see a South African clementine (a good old naartjie with a fancy name!), butternut, apple or nectarine, I buy it (same as I do with green beans from Kenya).  I figure it’s a small way of investing in a country I love.

 

Lavender

 

South African Fruit recently (and very kindly!) sent me a South African stone fruit hamper containing a number of Alpine nectarines and Flavor King plums, both of which are currently on sale in leading UK supermarkets (in fact, I saw no fewer than three different varieties of plums in our local Sainsbury’s last weekend!).  The fruit arrived in perfect condition, cosseted in a bed of shredded paper.  The first thing that struck me as I opened the lid was the scent.  As  child, I remember watching my mom choose her fruit almost entirely by smell – and of course I thought she was crazy!  But now I catch myself doing the same, standing in the fruit aisle with a dreamy expression on my face sniffing cantaloupes for a whiff of ripeness; or clementines for the first whiff of citrussy decay (which means at least one of them has a hidden bruise and will dissolve in a mass of mildew in my fruit bowl in a matter of days!).  Most supermarket fruit, though, smells of nothing – but not these babies!  The nectarines were positively perfumed.  I was already in love.  Most of the plums, I ate raw before I could stop myself.  Flavor Kings are actually pluots – a hybrid between an apricot and a plum, with firm yellow flesh that darkens to pink and red as it ripens – and they have a sweet, intense flavour.  Delicious.  The nectarines were similarly firm and not spongy or tastless as they can sometimes be.  Nick declined to have his any other way but raw – but I had other plans for mine.  I still have some of the culinary lavender from Delices du Luberons that was sent to me by the Vaucluse Tourist Board  in Provence, and I had been wanting to make something with a saffron syrup ever since my saffron epiphany at Restaurang Familjen in Gothenburg last year – and this was my chance.  The recipe is super-easy and quite breathtakingly delicious.  Because it is verjuice-based the syrup is not nearly as sweet as you think.  In fact, if you have a sweet tooth, I would say make it as I did with half water, half vinegar/verjuice, or add extra sugar.  It’s a perfect standby for an impromptu dessert when you are too lazy to do anything fancy, it’s naturally gluten-free – and it looks gorgeous! A plate of South African sunshine on a grey London evening.

 

NectarinesFinal

 

DISCLOSURE:  The nectarines were free samples provided by South African Fruit; and the lavender flowers were a free sample provided by the Vaucluse Tourisn Board in Provence. 


SAFruitCollage

 

 

P2P_badge-SomersetAnd finally, are you a writer or photographer who feels stuck in a creative rut?  Want to take your writing and photographs to the next level but need some extra inspiration?  Then sign up now for the last couple of places on Plate to Page, the hands-on weekend workshop that Meeta, Ilva and Jamie and I are running in the gorgeous Somerset countryside on 18-21 May! Here is what participants said about our previous workshop. If this sounds like something you want to be a part of, sign up here!

 

 

Grilled nectarines with saffron and lavender syrup
 
Print
Prep time
5 mins
Cook time
30 mins
Total time
35 mins
 
This unusual dessert is easy to prepare and packed with flavour and colour.
Author: Jeanne Horak-Druiff (adapted from Woolworths TASTE magazine)
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: French
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • ½ cup verjuice (I substituted ¼ cup apricot vinegar mixed with ¼ cup water)
  • ¼ cup brown sugar
  • a generous pinch of saffron threads
  • 1 tsp dried culinary lavender flowers (i.e. no pesticides on them)
  • 4 nectarines, halved and pitted (mine were Alpine variety)
  • a knob of butter
  • Whipped cream or creme fraiche to serve
Instructions
  1. Combine verjuice (or vinegar/water mix), sugar, saffron and lavender flowers in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil and then lower the heat so that the mixture simmers and starts to reduce and become more syrupy (about 10 minutes). Remove from the heat, strain through a sieve, then pick out and return a few of the saffron strands to the syrup. Keep warm.
  2. Heat the butter in a non-stick pan (use a griddle pan with ridges if you like). When the butter has melted and is bubbling, add the nectarines to the pan cut side down. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 5-10 minutes. When the cut sides have developed a good colour, turn and cook on the skin side for 5 mins. Fruit should remain a little firm, but heated through.
  3. Arrange two nectarine halves on each plate, pour the syrup over, and add a dollop of whilled cream or creme fraiche to the nectarine hollows if desired. Serve immediately.
Notes
The TASTE magazine recipe that I adapted can be found here: http://www.tastemag.co.za/Recipe-1355/Nectarines-with-lavender-and-saffron.aspx
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  1. Niamh says

    March 21, 2012 at 9:36 am

    Lovely! I must say I really enjoyed the fruit when in SA recently. Recipe looks good.

    Reply
  2. Barbara says

    March 21, 2012 at 9:42 am

    A lot to think about in that post Jeanne. I’ve never seen SA fruit here or in NZ. I have seen SA snowpeas for sale in NZ.

    Reply
  3. Kavey says

    March 21, 2012 at 10:23 am

    Agree completely that considering only airmiles is far too simplistic.
    As well as the issues of fertiliser (not only what type is used but the environmental impact of making and transporting it too), and the fuel used to harvest the crop, one might consider whether fuel has also been used to artificially light and heat the greenhouses, when it is too dark and cold to rely on the sun, here in Northern Europe. And as you said, whether something is shipped or flown.
    In all honesty, it’s almost impossible.
    So my solution is to buy those fruits which are quintissentially British when they are properly in season here.
    The rest, those things which we either don’t grow well or aren’t particularly well suited to our climate, I am happy to buy from origins farther afield. I do wish more information was provided, including whether produce was shipped or flown.
    I do buy fruit and veg from South Africa, not only because I’ve visited the country and loved it, but also because it is indeed less of a distance than South America and quality always seems good.
    If South African Fruit fancy treating any more bloggers with some fruit, much of which I’d not heard of, let alone tried, before your post, do feel free to point them at Kavey Eats! Heheh!
    x

    Reply
  4. Denise says

    March 21, 2012 at 10:53 am

    I had the most delicious fruits of my life during holidays in SA. I love this recipe; I can almost smell it by looking at that gorgeous picture and what a great idea to combine saffron and lavender!

    Reply
  5. Brian @ A Thought For Food says

    March 21, 2012 at 11:38 am

    I had never cooked with saffron until about a year ago when I was given some and oh how I fell in love with it. The stone fruit paired with the spices is just a wonderful combo.

    Reply
  6. Soma says

    March 21, 2012 at 2:10 pm

    This is spring / summer heaven! They look so good and tender. The flavor combo is just divine. We try to get the locally grown and seasonal. Texas being a warm place produces a lot! and we are lucky. Planting some fruit trees at home this year and crossing my toes and fingers that they survive.. Home grown!

    Reply
  7. thelittleloaf says

    March 21, 2012 at 2:27 pm

    What an absolutely gorgeous recipe – perfect for this beautiful weather we’ve been having recently 🙂

    Reply
  8. Cara @ Gourmet Chick says

    March 21, 2012 at 11:33 pm

    So funny how you miss what you don’t have. I loved the berries in the UK as well but pined for Australian mangoes (the ones you get in the UK are so hard) now I am back here and have all the mango I want, guess what I am missing!

    Reply
  9. Cara @ Gourmet Chick says

    March 21, 2012 at 11:33 pm

    So funny how you miss what you don’t have. I loved the berries in the UK as well but pined for Australian mangoes (the ones you get in the UK are so hard) now I am back here and have all the mango I want, guess what I am missing!

    Reply
  10. professional writers says

    March 22, 2012 at 7:52 am

    It must be very delicious dish. I hope that I could coook it at home.

    Reply
  11. Rosa says

    March 22, 2012 at 8:52 am

    A divine dessert! Those must taste really good. I love those exquisite flavors.
    Cheers,
    Rosa

    Reply
  12. massimos pizza says

    March 22, 2012 at 11:19 am

    hi,
    South Africa is the best place to eat, they have great collection of the dishes, they provide at good taste.

    Reply
  13. Móna Wise says

    March 22, 2012 at 2:34 pm

    I do love grilled fruit. The smell and stickiness of it all. I still cannot bring myself to ‘eat’ lavender. I love the fragrance of it all and we have oodles of it growing everywhere around the house – I should cave in and just eat some. I love the photos Jeanne – very appetizing indeed x PS – congrats on your recent listing of Top 100 UK Food blogs. Well earned x

    Reply
  14. Karen says

    March 22, 2012 at 2:37 pm

    Aw this is wonderful…..a fabulous recipe and nostalgic post for me, as I remember sitting in the garden at our home in Wynberg when I was little nd eating nectarines straight from the tree! I LOVE Outspan oranges too…..I have a wonderful old Outspan advert form the 1050’s that can share with you of you like.

    Reply
  15. Krista says

    March 22, 2012 at 9:17 pm

    I love this post, Jeanne. 🙂 You’ve given me something further to think about when I choose what to buy and what to leave on the shelves. I’m back in the States for a very short time and it’s interesting to see the shelves with new eyes. I miss my Aussie dragonfruit and blue pumpkins. 🙂 Love this recipe too. I’ve been roasting like mad recently and am such a happy eater. 🙂

    Reply
  16. Sara{OneTribeGourmet} says

    March 23, 2012 at 3:48 am

    Jeanne,thank you for that thought provoking post. I wish South African fruit was available her in the US. Love the pairing of saffron & lavender syrup with those gorgeous nectarines!

    Reply
  17. Delia Jordaan says

    March 23, 2012 at 6:39 am

    I’m so proud of our amazing fruit, thank you for giving it such a great platform. I think we take our fruit for granted sometimes as we are not always aware of how far and wide it is exported. Next time I fill by basket with beautiful summer fruit (which actually is later today) I will remember to be greatful.

    Reply
  18. bellini says

    March 24, 2012 at 1:35 pm

    We try our best to eat locally and support out local farmers but my diet would be without the necessities like flour, salt and even pepper. We all do what we can I am sure, but when a special treat comes our way it is hard to resist!

    Reply
  19. Debs @ The Spanish Wok says

    March 24, 2012 at 5:09 pm

    Oh yum, I’m not big on dessert, but when served hot I’m a fan.
    This sounds delicious with the addition of saffron too, I’d have to have vanilla ice cream to slowly melt on the plate, heaven.
    Thanks, have saved for another day.

    Reply
  20. Nathadale says

    March 25, 2012 at 1:33 pm

    I love nectarines, it is my favorite fruit, but i really amazed that other than eating this one normaly, I cannot imagine that there is another way of preparation for nectarines. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  21. m says

    March 25, 2012 at 6:33 pm

    When we lived in SA one of my memories is my grandpa buying a full box of lychees and us grandchildren devouring them… it breaks my heart to buy then in tiny packets…
    A family friend a SA emigre in the 1960’s landed up in Edinburgh and for several years persuaded the local greengrocer that when the avocados were soft that they were off and they should be sold to her very cheaply but ‘I was buggered when the Israeli Avocado Growers did some consumer education about eating avocados.’ And the cheap avos stopped…
    Living in Pietermartzburg with avocado trees raining them down the size of rugby balls my mom was terrified that I’d be hit by one as I crawled as a baby under then. So she phoned up the local Indian fruit and veg seller who came with a truck and removed them. It was painful to pay pounds for them when we came to the UK.

    Reply
  22. Sylvie @ Gourmande in the Kitchen says

    March 26, 2012 at 3:31 am

    What a lovely simple dessert. I must know what that saffron and lavender syrup tastes like.

    Reply
  23. Meeta says

    March 26, 2012 at 9:58 am

    Oh how I absolutely love such desserts. Quick and absolutely divine! What I loved about moving to Europe was enjoying the produce at the proper time of year. Living in Qatar we pretty much got everything all year round. So that was a highlight for me – waiting impatiently for the right season to enjoy berries, peaches, tomatoes and of course asparagus and butternut squash (although i think we should enjoy those all year round LOL!)
    Love the subtle lavender highlight here!

    Reply
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💩  At Crossness, all London's sewage from south of the river was was raised by 9-12 metres to large reservoirs so that gravity would cause it to flow further east and into the Thames estuary. (Yes, until the 1880s, raw sewage was simply pumped into the Thames!)

💩 The incoming liquid was raised by the four enormous steam driven pumps, built to Joseph Bazalgette's design. The pumps were named Victoria, Prince Consort, Albert Edward, and Alexandra. They are thought to be the largest remaining rotative beam engines in the world, with 52-ton flywheels and 47-ton beams. 

💩 The pumping station was decommissioned and abandoned in the 1950s but declared a listed building in 1970.  Although all 4 beam engines remain in place, they were so damaged that today (thanks to the efforts of the Crossness Engines Trust) only Prince Consort has been restored to working condition and can be seen in action on open days.

💩 The exuberant and colourful wrought ironwork inside is the amazing work of architect Charles Henry Driver. My favourite detail is the fact that the pillars in the central atrium are topped with stylised figs and senna pods... two of nature's greatest natural laxatives 🤣
*NEW RECIPE* Roasted Brussels sprouts with feta ch *NEW RECIPE* Roasted Brussels sprouts with feta cheese, pomegranate and pine nuts

Ever noticed how you are affected by colours? 🌈

Maybe some colours make you agitated and some make you relaxed. Or maybe you find yourself inexplicably attracted to a particular colour (oh, hi teal and aqua!💙). On the basis that all colours have a wavelength, and that those outside the visible spectrum can affect us, it makes sense that the colours we see can affect our mood or even our physiology. Did you know for instance that exposure to red light can increase your blood pressure and heart rate? Are there any colours that you find yourself particularly attracted to or affected by?

The pretty colours of these roasted Brussels sprouts with feta cheese, pomegranate and pine nuts will be the first things that attract you to this dish - but it is the delicious combination of flavours and textures that will keep you coming back for more!

The recipe (and more about how colour affects us mentally and physically) is now live on my blog - click the live link in my profile and remember to like and bookmark this post to see more Cooksister in your Instagram feed ❤️
Perspective: a particular attitude towards or way Perspective: a particular attitude towards or way of regarding something.

Perspective is the one thing that the Covid-19 pandemic has given us plenty of. It has certainly made us re-evaluate what is truly important, and also what we did and didn't enjoy about our lives  before the pandemic and its associated lockdowns. It made me appreciate how much happiness my house, my job, my friends, my own company and my running bring to my life (and how fortunate I am to have all these things). But it also brought home how much I enjoy and miss travel, the theatre, and the luxury of reataurant visits at the drop of a hat. I don't think words can describe my joy at sipping the first coffee purchased from a coffee shop in summer 2020 as lockdown eased. It's the little things...

One of the things I have enjoyed and will not miss as the world creeps back to normality is the absence of crowds in what is usually a crowded city. On the occasions that I have been in central London since the start of the pandemic, streets have been blissfully empty and it has felt as if I were discovering my city anew. This glorious perspective (hah!) of St Paul's Cathedral normally requires a long wait while a queue of tourists and "influencers" ahead of you pose for photos - but on this glorious day last Spring it was almost deserted. I will miss that...

Is there anything you will miss as Covid-19 restrictions start to be lifted?
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Jeanne Horak is a freelance food and travel writer; recipe developer and photographer. South African by birth and Londoner by choice, Jeanne has been writing about food and travel on Cooksister since 2004. She is a popular speaker on food photography and writing has also contributed articles, recipes and photos to a number of online and print publications. Jeanne has also worked with a number of destination marketers to promote their city or region. Please get in touch to work with her Read More…

Latest Recipes

Salmon with blood oranges dill and capers
Brussels sprouts with feta and pomegranate
Roast lamb with pomegranate glaze
Blood orange & pistachio galettes
Cauliflower topped steak with melted cheese
Plate of potted smoked salmon with slaw and a glass of champagne
bowls of pistachio pomegranate bircher muesli
Brussels sprouts with chorizo & hazelnuts

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