peach turnovers

Recently I made a peach pie for a friend’s birthday. Bill calls himself a Pie Man and bakes beautiful pies himself. A peach pie was the perfect present. Peaches are plentiful right now and we get the South Carolina freestone peaches here at the Nashville farmer’s markets.  This summer I finally understood what the name means. Freestone. Once you cut the peach open, the pit comes out easily. Pretty cool. Makes me wonder if peaches called cling have pits that won’t exit. Needy pits.

When Bill and his wife, Danutia, got the peach pie home and had a slice each they exclaimed in a FB message — “Magnificent!” But they also wanted to know what was that indescribable ingredient that they couldn’t name. Something was dancing with the peaches in there; they loved it but couldn’t place their palate finger on it.

“It tastes wonderfully un-American!” said Danutia, a New York to Tennessee transplant, but originally from Poland. Bill tempered her excitement with: “You mean it tastes European.”

It tastes like rosemary. That’s what it tastes like. That’s what’s in it.

                                                                                          rosemary

Fresh, minutely-minced rosemary. Such a perfect peach pal. I LOVE the combination.

Use this filling for pies, of course, but here’s how I made peach turnovers (with the same filling, just cut the peaches smaller).

Peach Turnovers w Vanilla Icing

1 package puff pastry (2 sheets), defrosted

2-3 medium peaches, peeled, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1/3 cup sugar

2-3 sprigs fresh rosemary, leaves minced, stems discarded

1 egg, lightly beaten, add a teaspoon of water (egg wash)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a medium mixing bowl stir together the fruit, sugar, and rosemary

Roll out one of the dough sheets onto a lightly floured work surface until a little thinner. Cut into 3-inch squares. Place a teaspoon of fruit mixture in the center of each square, brush the edges of the dough with a little egg wash, and fold over into a triangle. Press edges together with fork tines. Brush each lightly with egg, make a small slit in the top. Place on a parchment-lined sheet pan. Repeat with the other sheet of dough. Re-roll leftover dough to make more. Bake turnovers in 400 degree oven for 20 minutes or until golden. Let cool. Drizzle lightly with icing in a zigzag pattern.

Icing: In a medium mixing bowl, smash flat 1 tablespoon room-temperature butter. Add 1 cup powdered sugar and mix to incorporate butter. Add a few tablespoons of very hot water, a little at a time, stirring vigorously until an icing forms. Stir in a drop of vanilla extract. Add more water to make as thin or thick as you like. Should be thin for drizzling.

                                                             peach turnovers w vanilla icing