Claire Ptak’s recipes for roasted peaches served two ways

Peaches are by far one of the most popular fruits of summer. Juicy, refreshing, and beautiful to look at, they are delicate but have substance. They are equally good eaten fresh or cooked into puddings. The best way to check for ripeness is to gently press the area surrounding the stem. If this is tender with a little give, it is ripe. If firm and unyielding, leave the fruit in a cool place for a couple more days to fully ripen.

Roasting is probably my favourite way to prepare peaches. Whether in your own oven, a wood-fired one or even on a skillet over a barbecue or open fire, the intense direct heat reduces the water content in the fruit, concentrating its flavour. Almost every type of fruit does well cooked in this manner and you will see me recommending it time and time again, switching it up with different sugars, spices, and even herbs such as lemon verbena, sweet geranium or bay. I never stray too far from vanilla though. Its warm floral fragrance melds so well with just about every fruit, it’s hard to go wrong. Half a vanilla pod added to roasting peach halves and raspberries with a little sweet wine and sugar makes the easiest and one of the most impressive puddings. Serve with stone-cold cream or ice-cream for a take on peach melba.

Pies and cobblers come in many shapes and sizes and there are a million recipes for the pastry. Lard is not used very often anymore, but pastry made from it is truly special. This recipe for an open-faced peach pie is inspired by a southern technique I learned from chef Scott Peacock after working with him at a fundraising event. He called the technique of pushing the pastry away from you while incorporating the water, “frizzling”. Love that.

Related: Claire Ptak’s recipe for nectarine and cherry cobbler | Baking

Roasted peaches and raspberries with vanilla (pictured above)

Serves 6
3 large peaches, halved
½ vanilla pod
80ml sweet wine, such as Muscat de Beaumes de Venise
150g raspberries
4 tbsp caster sugar
Vanilla ice-cream, to serve

1 Preheat the oven to 220C/425F/gas mark 7. Arrange the peaches in a roasting dish, cut-side up. Split and scrape the vanilla pod, then add it all to the dish. Pour over the wine, scatter the raspberries on top and finally sprinkle with the sugar.

2 Roast for around 20 minutes, or until the tops of the fruit begin to bubble and catch, and a syrupy juice forms on the bottom of the roasting dish.

3 Serve half a peach with vanilla ice-cream and drizzle with the sauce.

White peach open-face pie

Serves 6
280g plain flour
¾ tsp fine sea salt
1 tsp caster sugar
150g unsalted butter, cold
50g lard
5-6 tbsp ice water
2 tbsp cream, for brushing
2 tbsp caster sugar, for sprinkling

For the filling
1kg white peaches
200g caster sugar
1 tbsp cornflour
2 tsp vanilla extract
¼ tsp almond extract
80g butter, cut into cubes
Pouring cream, to serve

1 Butter a 23cm pie or gratin dish. Now, make the pastry. Sieve the flour, salt and sugar into a large bowl, and mix. Cut in the cold butter and lard using a pastry cutter or the back of a fork. Drizzle in the water until you have added 5 tbsp. Toss together with the fork or pastry cutter and bring it all together. If it still seems a little dry, add 1 tbsp of water.

2 Lightly flour a work surface, then turn the dough out on to it. Use the heel of your hand to push the dough in a smearing motion, away from you. Do this a few times to incorporate the fat and water into the flour to make a crisp and flaky pastry. Rest the pastry for 30 minutes in the fridge.

3 Roll out the pastry into a 26-28cm diameter disc. Place inside your prepared dish so that the edges hang well over the sides. Set aside in the fridge or freezer until ready to use.

4 For the fruit filling, cut the peaches into eighths. Whisk together the sugar and cornflour, and toss well with the peaches. Add the vanilla and almond extracts, then toss again.

5 Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. Remove your pastry dish from the fridge or freezer. Fill with the peaches and dot with the butter. Fold the pastry over roughly. Brush the pastry with cream and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until the pastry is golden and the fruit is bubbling. Leave to cool for at least 2 hours before serving.

• Claire Ptak is a pastry chef, author and food stylist and owns Violet Bakery in London. She is the author of the Violet Bakery Cookbook (Square Peg); @violetcakeslondon