Torta di Pesche

Is it even possible to choose a favorite stone fruit? If pressed, I guess I would go with the apricot, as it was my childhood favorite. But it can be hard to find good apricots; so often they look tempting only to turn out mealy and flavorless when you bite into them. Such a betrayal!

What about peaches? Peaches deliver. You can often tell whether one is good just by its floral aroma, and by holding it to feel its its heft, barely pressing it so as not to bruise it. No deception here.

Georgia peaches get all the praise, but we have some fantastic ones here in the D.C. area. For years, I have relied on peaches from Twin Springs Fruit Farm, which I get at my local farmers’ market. The season has just begun and already this year’s crop is outstanding. You can tell by how juicy the slices are in the above photo.

White peaches are popular now, with their pretty, pale blush interior and intense floral perfume. But I prefer yellow; I appreciate their acidic tang and their more fruit-forward flavor ~ attributes which make them perfect for this simple snacking cake.

I say simple because it is easy to whip up, but you do need to have certain ingredients on hand: almond flour, fine cornmeal, and yogurt (though a little subbing is fine). This recipe is loosely based on one that was published last year in the Washington Post. I’ve taken quite a few liberties with it and I like the result ~ a tender cake with just a hint of spice plus a welcome tang both from diced peaches and from finely grated lemon zest.

The original recipe calls for baking the batter in loaf pans and icing the cakes with a lemon glaze. I used a single ring pan and omitted the glaze in favor of a dusting of confectioners’ sugar. That way I can top slices with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream at serving time.

P.S. “Pesche,” the Italian word for peaches, is pronounced “PES-keh.” If you pronounce it “PESH-eh” you are saying the Italian word for fish, and as much as I love fish I don’t think it would be good in this cake.

TORTA DI PESCHE
PEACH CAKE with almond and cornmeal
Makes one ring cake or two (8X4-inch) loaves

INGREDIENTS
8 ounces (227g; 2 sticks) unsalted butter, at cool room temperature, plus more for greasing the pan(s)
1 1/4 cups (156g) unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for coating the pan(s)
1/2 cup (75g) fine cornmeal
1/2 cup (50g) almond flour or almond meal (may substitute more cornmeal if you don’t have almond flour
2 teaspoons (8g) baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons (4g) fine salt
1/2 teaspoon (4g) cinnamon
A pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 cup (150g) whole milk yogurt
1/4 cup (60ml) whole milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups (300g) sugar
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon (about 1 tablespoon)
4 large eggs, at room temperature
2 medium peaches, cut into 1/2-inch dice (no need to peel)
Confectioners’ sugar for dusting

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Heat the oven to 350° F (177° C). Lightly coat the pan(s) with butter and dust with flour, shaking off the excess.

2. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, almond flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. In a large measuring cup, whisk together the yogurt, milk, and vanilla extract.

3. Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or use a hand mixer) and beat first on low then on medium speed until light fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the bowl as needed. Beat in the lemon zest and then the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

4. With the mixer on medium-low speed, add the dry ingredients and the yogurt-milk mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients, and beating until fully incorporated (scrape down the bowl as needed). Gently fold in the peaches with a spatula. Save a few to scatter on top, if you like, as they tend to congregate towards the bottom of the cake.

5. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan(s), dividing it evenly if using two. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, until well browned on top and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool for 30 to 60 minutes; then turn the cake(s) out of the pan(s).

6. To serve, dust with confectioners’ sugar. Slice and serve plain, or with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.