If I had my little way, I’d eat peaches every day, but imported peaches do not compare to those picked at their peak and July is the perfect time to indulge in these juicy morsels. The flavours in this dish are so well matched that it’s a wonder how amaretti and vanilla don’t grow on the same tree as the peach. Great dessert for a BBQ as you can prepare the peaches for the oven and just bake when you are tired, tiddly and percolating coffee.

Twists – Toast flaked almonds or roast pecans in maple syrup and scatter over this dessert or sub the vanilla essence in the cream for 1/2 tsp ground star anise.

Preheat oven to 180°C. Halve and de-stone 8 peaches then place cut side up in a shallow baking dish. Melt 100g of butter over a low heat and add to a bowl with 20 crushed amaretti biscuits, 3 tbsp runny honey and 50ml of pedro ximinez sherry or vin santo. Mix together then spoon 1-2 tsp into each peach half. *Juice 2 oranges and add to the dish with a drizzle of sherry and honey for extra juicyness. Sprinkle peaches with 1 tbsp demerara sugar then bake for 15-25 minutes until golden. For the cream, mix together 200g of mascarpone, 150g creme fraiche, 40g icing sugar and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract then split and remove seeds from a vanilla pod and whisk together to combine. Serve dolloped over the peaches.