Stone Fruit Zurra Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Butter the inside of a medium cast-iron skillet. Add the fruit and cinnamon sticks to the skillet. Add the port and a few grinds of pepper. Sprinkle brown sugar on top and roast until the fruit is soft, about 10 to 15 minutes. Discard cinnamon sticks and serve with ice cream.

Steps:

• In a large glass pitcher, mix together the peach, nectarine and apricot slices, lemon zest, and cinnamon.
• Add the apricot brandy and stir to combine.
• Slowly pour in the wine and stir to combine.
• Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or as long as overnight.
• When ready to serve, add the club soda and stir gently.
• Fill glasses with ice and slowly pour sangria over the ice, allowing the fruit to fall into the glasses.

Steps:

• Butter a baking dish and lay in the fruit halves, skin-side down. Dot with the butter and sprinkle with the sugar. Add 2 tablespoons water to the bottom of the dish. Cover with foil and bake until the fruit is soft, about 10 minutes. Uncover and finish baking for 10 minutes, until the fruit is slumping. Serve with almonds sprinkled on top.

Steps:

• Pit the stone fruit and cut into irregular pieces. Transfer to a serving platter, then sprinkle with the lemon juice, sugar and 1/2 teaspoon flaky sea salt. Toss with your hands, then let sit until juices pool on the platter, 5 to 10 minutes. Taste and adjust sugar, salt and lemon juice until the fruit tastes perky and bright - like the greatest stone fruit you've eaten.
• Tear the mozzarella into bite-size pieces and nestle it among the fruit. Tuck in the herb leaves. Drizzle the platter with olive oil. If the cheese looks dry, add a little more oil. Sprinkle with a few grinds of black pepper and a pinch of flaky salt, and serve.

Steps:

• For the zurra red wine syrup: In a pot, combine wine, sugar, juniper berries and cinnamon stick. Place over low heat and stir just until sugar has dissolved; do not bring to a boil.
• Pour over apricots and raisins. Let stand 20 minutes. Strain over a bowl and reserve fruit and syrup separately. Discard juniper berries and cinnamon stick. This makes more than needed (2 cups syrup and 1 1/2 cups fruit), but syrup and fruit may be stored separately, covered and refrigerated, for up to 1 month.
• For the zurracapote: In a 3-quart container, combine the zurra syrup, wine, liqueur and vodka. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 3 hours.
• To serve, divide punch between two 1 1/2-quart pitchers. Fill each of 12 tall glasses with ice, 1 slice lemon and a spoonful of diced apple. Divide remaining lemon and apple, 1/4 cup apricot-raisin mixture and 2 cups ice cubes between the pitchers. Pour 5 ounces zurracapote into each glass, and top with 1 ounce of Sprite, or to taste. Stir before serving.

Steps:

• Set a strainer over a bowl and cut the nectarines into the strainer, so their juice collects in the bowl.
• Heat the butter in a non-stick skillet over medium heat.
• When it is hot but not smoking, add the nectarines and sauté them until they sizzle and their juices reduce and begin to thicken, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Sprinkle the sugar over them and sauté until the juices further thicken and the sugar caramelizes slightly, about 1 minute. You may want to increase the heat under the pan to medium-high.
• Add the lemon juice and sauté until the juices thicken, then add any nectarine juice that collected in the bowl, and shake the pan so that all is well blended.
• Let the nectarines cook, shaking the pan occasionally, until the juices are very thick, which will take a minute or so. The total cooking time will be about 6 minutes.
• Transfer the nectarines to 4 warmed dessert plates, or to a warmed serving dish, let sit for about 4 minutes so they are not blistering hot when served.