Charred nectarine and panettone with crème fraîche

This would be a perfect fancy breakfast to have cooked on a barbecue or over an open fire. Eat it outside while drinking lots of strong black coffee or sipping summer holiday breakfast Champagne.

Charred nectarine and panettone Credit: Benito Martin

• serves

  4–6

• prep

  5 minutes

• cook

  10 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 6 nectarines
• 1 tbsp robust extra virgin olive oil
• black pepper and river salt
• ½ large panettone (500 g)
• 300 g crème fraîche

Instructions

Cut your nectarines into 6 wedges over a bowl to collect any juice. Place the nectarine wedges into the bowl and drizzle with oil. Season gently and set aside.

Have a grill plate warming to a gentle heat, either a flat or ridged one. Cut your panettone into thick 4 cm slices or wedges. Cook each side for 30 seconds – 1 minute, until you get a nice slightly charred surface. Remove from the grill and set aside.

Turn the heat up on your grill until it is scorchingly hot. Use tongs to place the nectarine wedges flat on the grill. Let them cook, undisturbed, on one of the cut sides for 2–3 minutes or until they start to blacken. Use a flat spatula to ease them off the grill and return them to the bowl.

As they sit there, being warm they should release a little juice and if you do happen to be drinking bubbles, a little splash into the mixing bowl wouldn’t go astray. Failing that, give them another good drizzle with oil.

You can individually plate this, if you want to be fancy, but I like the thought of people sitting outside, tearing a piece of panettone, smearing it with some crème fraîche and then spooning some wedges of the nectarine over the top and eating it messily with their hands. 

Photography by Benito Martin. Food styling by O Tama Carey. Prop styling by Lynsey Fryers. Food preparation by Nick Banbury.

This recipe is part of The seasonal cook: Nectarine column. View previous The seasonal cook columns and recipes.

Always on the hunt for the next vegetable to pickle, follow O Tama Carey on Instagram.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.