This three-ingredient dessert is one of Michael Van de Elzen’s favourites. 

Recipe and words: Michael Van de Elzen

This is one of my favourite desserts, and I don’t make it enough. I first made this dish back in London around 20 years ago, and it’s still a hit on any restaurant menu. The combination of rich sweet fruit, the slight bitterness of the caramelised sugar and the crispy pastry make a delightful combination.

I use a heavy cast iron fry pan for this dish as it caramelises the sugars evenly and allows you to use just one pan. Always cook it for longer than you think, as you want the pastry layer to be nice and hard, touching the caramel, so it has a real crack when you eat it.

Serves: 6
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 sheet puff pastry
3 peaches
3 tbsp caster sugar

METHOD

Preheat oven to 190°.

Cut the peaches in half around the stone. In a large, oven-proof frying pan, heat the sugar until it begins to bubble and caramelise. When it starts to turn dark gold, remove the pan from the heat and arrange the peaches inside, allowing 1cm around the edge.

Cut the pastry into a circle slightly larger than the pan. Carefully cover the peaches; tuck the pastry in so that it touches the bottom of the pan and the caramel.

Bake for 20 minutes in the pan, set in the middle of the oven. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly.

Very carefully flip the tarte over: place a plate slightly larger than the pan on top of it and quickly turn over, then slide the tarte onto a serving plate. Slice into wedges and serve warm with some vanilla bean ice-cream.

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