Peaches Cream Braid Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375ºF. Unroll 1 package of the crescent dough; do not separate. Arrange longest sides of dough across width of a rectangle stone. Repeat with remaining package of dough. Using a baker's roller, roll dough to seal seams. On longest sides of baking stone, cut dough into strips 1 1/2 inches wide and 3 inches deep. (There will be 6 inches of uncut dough down center for filling.)
• In a bowl, combine cream cheese and powdered sugar; whisk until smooth. Separate egg (set aside yolk for later use); add egg white to cream cheese mixture, whisking until smooth. Spread cream cheese mixture evenly down center of dough. In a bowl, combine peaches and spice blend; toss gently using. Spoon peaches evenly over cream cheese mixture.
• To braid, lift strips of dough across mixture to meet in center, twisting each strip one turn. Continue alternating strips to form braid. Tuck ends up to seal at end of braid. Combine reserved egg yolk with water; brush egg mixture over dough. Chop almonds; sprinkle over dough.
• Bake 25-28 minutes or until deep golden brown. Remove to a cooling rack. Sprinkle lightly with powdered sugar if desired. Serve warm.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Prepare a baking dish with cooking spray.
• Arrange peaches cut-side up in the prepared baking dish.
• Put butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat, add almonds, and heat together until butter melts, about 2 minutes. Stir honey, brown sugar, and cinnamon into the melted butter; bring to a simmer and add brandy and salt. Stir to dissolve the salt, remove saucepan from heat, and add vanilla extract; pour the mixture over the peaches.
• Bake peaches in preheated oven until the peaches are cooked through, about 30 minutes.

Steps:

• Make the pastry cream: In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, bring milk and lemon zest to a simmer over medium heat. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks and sugar until thick and pale yellow; add flour and whisk until well combined.
• Remove lemon zest from milk and discard; slowly whisk hot milk into egg mixture. Return mixture to saucepan and place over medium heat; cook, stirring constantly, until cream thickens and begins to boil.
• Transfer pastry cream to a large bowl; cover with plastic wrap, pressing down on the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Let cool completely.
• Make the dough: In a large bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder. Whisk eggs in another large bowl. Add sugar and whisk to combine. Whisk in milk, butter, and lemon zest until smooth. Gradually add flour mixture, mixing with a fork, until dough is smooth and stiff. Let dough rest for 5 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with nonstick baking mats; set aside.
• Using a lightly mounded tablespoon of dough, roll the dough firmly between your palms to make a smooth round ball, about the size of a walnut. Repeat process, taking care to make sure all the balls are fairly uniform in size. Place balls on prepared baking sheets spacing about 1 inch apart; you should be able to fit 24 balls on each baking sheet. Flatten tops slightly with your fingertips.
• Transfer to oven and bake until bottoms are lightly browned, about 15 minutes; tops will remain pale. Transfer to a rack and let cool slightly.
• Assemble the peaches: While the cookies are still warm, use a small, sharp knife to cut a circle about the size of a quarter on the bottom (flat) side of each cookie, taking care not to crack the edges. Use the tip of the knife to scrape out enough crumbs to make hollow and hold about 1 teaspoon pastry cream. Set cookies aside.
• Place rum or maraschino liqueur and schnapps in a small bowl. Add enough red and yellow food coloring to create your desired shade of peach; set aside. Fill a shallow bowl with sugar; set aside.
• Fill each hollowed-out cookie with 1 teaspoon filling. Sandwich two cookies together so that the filling comes just to the edge, taking care not to crack or break. Using a pastry brush, brush "peach" with colored liquor and roll in sugar to coat. Transfer to a large airtight container and repeat process with remaining cookies, liqueur, and sugar. Cover container and transfer to refrigerator; let chill overnight.
• Just before serving, pierce each "peach" with a toothpick where the two cookies come together and insert the stem of a peach leaf. Alternatively, you can garnish cookies with decorative or chocolate leaves.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease sides and bottom of a 10 inch deep-dish pie pan.
• In a medium mixing bowl, mix together flour, salt, baking powder and pudding mix. Mix in butter, egg and milk. Beat for 2 minutes. Pour mixture into pie pan. Arrange the peach slices on top of the pudding mixture.
• In a small mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Add 1/2 cup sugar and 3 tablespoons reserved peach syrup. Beat for 2 minutes. Spoon mixture over peaches to within 1 inch of pan edge. Mix together 1 tablespoon sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and sprinkle over top.
• Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until golden brown. Chill before serving.

Steps:

• Cut each peach in half along the crease, twist open, and remove the pit. Peel and slice. Cut slices in half to get roughly 2 cups of sliced peaches.
• Bring sugar and water to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Boil until a syrup forms, about 3 minutes. Stir in peaches until coated. Bring syrup back to a light simmer, about 1 minute. Immediately remove from heat and pour mixture into a bowl.
• Transfer peaches into a large bowl using a slotted spoon. Pour in heavy cream and stir to combine. Divide mixture between serving glasses, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until completely chilled and cream has absorbed all the peach flavor, at least 3 hours.