Brown Butter Peaches and Cream

This recipe for brown butter peaches and cream is the most delicious summer pudding you could think of. Golden peaches, cooked in a brown butter caramel, and topped with a dollop of whipped cream. When peaches are in season, they are juicy, sweet, and just so good, so here, I’ve kept it simple so the flavours of the peach can really shine.

peaches and cream on a white plate with green trim.

I make this more times than I care to remember during the summer months, then continue to make it with other stone fruits in autumn and winter (much like my Italian plum cake). The combination of fruity peaches, the brown-butter caramel, all glossy and gorgeous then the sweet vanilla whipped cream and crunchy almonds is just incredible. It is also ideal to make for a dinner party as it uses just 7 ingredients and takes less than 20 minutes to prepare.

Why you will love this recipe:

It’s incredibly quick to make but it’s so delicious at the same time.
It makes the most of delicious peaches which are some of the BEST summer fruit you can eat.
Whilst I love it with peaches, it can easily be made with different fruits so it’s easy to serve to a range of people and at different times of year!

Ingredients:

See recipe card for the exact recipe with a full list of ingredients and measurements

Double cream – use heavy cream if you are in the US. you need a cream with a high fat content when whipping. You could use whipping cream too.

Peaches – opt for fresh plump, ripe peaches. Nectarines would also work well.

Soft light brown sugar – this adds a lovely molasses flavour to the caramel. You could swap for caster sugar or granulated sugar if you prefer, it will just have a slightly different flavour (but will still be delicious).

Butter – salted or unsalted butter works here.

Substitutions and Variations

Peaches – I love using nectarines and apricots in the summer, or switching to plums in the autumn months. You could also add a pinch of cinnamon to the caramel for a warming spiced flavour.

Toasted almonds: The toasted flaked almonds at a lovely crunchy texture to the peaches and cream. You could also add roughly chopped toasted hazelnuts or pistachios, if you prefer. Alternatively, you could sprinkle with a homemade oaty (or nutty) crumble or granola.

Cream: Peaches and cream is a classic flavour combination but, if you aren’t a fan, there are plenty of alternatives. I love peaches with sweetened mascarpone for an Italian-inspired twist. Equally, a scoop of good-quality vanilla ice cream is delicious too. Or a scoop of homemade Honeycomb Ice Cream would be so incredibly good.

Here’s how to make simple Peaches and Cream:

Here’s a step by step guide for what you need to do, but you can find the full recipe at the bottom of the page for detailed instructions.

destoning the peaches for peaches and cream.

ONE: Use a knife to slice around the pit of the peach. Go from the top of the peach where the stem would be and round. Hold each side of the peach and twist in opposite directions to break apart. De-stone the peaches from there.

TWO: In a large non-stick frying pan set over a low heat, melt the butter until foaming. Add the sugar and honey and swirl to melt together.

THREE: Once the sugar, honey and butter have all melted, add the peaches cut side down. Cook gently over a low heat for about 3-4 minutes – or until they have taken on a lovely golden colour.

FOUR: Continue to baste the peaches in the caramel as they cook. Flip them over to briefly cook on the other said, continuing to baste with the brown butter caramel. Then serve with the vanilla whipped cream and almonds!

Cooking Tips

How to cut peaches: run a knife around the centre of the peach, from the stem downwards, not around the middle like a belt. Then gently pinch the peach in your two hands and twist it apart in opposite directions. This will separate the two halves. Then I use my fingers to pull out the pit.

How to make caramel: this is a fairly foolproof caramel. I melt the butter and then add the sugar and honey. Here, I don’t use a spoon to mix but rather swirl the pan around. This melts them all together and avoids any sugar crystallisation. Once the peaches are added to the pan, you can baste them in the caramel (this means spoon the caramel sauce back over the peaches as they cook)

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to peel the peaches?

No, I never do but if you aren’t a fan of the skin, you are more than welcome too. It will mean the prep takes a little longer though.

Can I store the peaches once cooked?

Yes, store in a tupperware in the fridge for about 3-4 days. To reheat, warm gently in a non-stick frying pan over a low heat.

How else could I serve Peaches and Cream?

This is such an elegant dessert in its own right, but you can also use it as an accompaniment to other puds. Homemade crepes or French toast with caramelised peaches and cream would be so good.

do i need to peel peaches for peaches and cream?

No, I find best to leave the skin on as it holds the ripe peach together when it’s in the pan. They can turn a little mushy without the skin. You can peel them if you like but just be delicate in the pan with them.

Can I make this Peaches and Cream dessert suitable for vegans?

Simply swap the cream for a whippable vegan cream (like Oatly’s Whippable Creamy Oat) or vegan vanilla ice cream, use a plant-based vegan butter to make a vegan caramel and swap the honey for maple syrup.

Other recipes you might like

If you like quick and easy desserts, then I would recommend trying my Apple Beignets. Also if you have bought a whole punnet of peaches and want to use them up in different ways, try my Peach Cobbler with Cake Mix or Grilled Peach & Burrata Ciabatta.

peach caprese on a white plate with red rim

Salad Recipes

Peach Caprese Salad

Puddings

Apple Crumble Cheesecake

Easy Baking Recipes

Plum Yogurt Cake

Easy Baking Recipes

Raspberry, Almond and Ricotta Cake

If you tried this Peaches and Cream recipe or any other recipe on the site, please do leave a comment and let us know how it went!

Peaches and Cream

By: Margie Nomura

Simplicity can be beautiful and this is exactly that: peaches and cream.

Prep: 5 mins
Cook: 10 mins
Total: 15 mins
Servings: 2 servings

Ingredients

200 ml heavy cream (double cream)
½ tsp vanilla extract
3 ripe peaches
30 g butter
2 tbsp soft light brown sugar
1 tbsp runny honey
1 tbsp flaked almonds , toasted

Instructions

Pour the cream into a medium-sized bowl, add the vanilla extract and whisk until you have soft peaks. Set aside.
Slice the peaches in half and remove the stones. Set aside.
In a large non-stick frying pan set over a low heat, melt the butter until foaming. Add the sugar and honey and swirl to melt together.
Once the sugar, honey and butter have all melted, add the peaches cut side down. Cook over a medium heat for about 3-4 minutes – or until they have taken on a lovely golden colour. You don’t want them to burn but you don’t want the heat to be too low as they’ll never get golden.
Carefully flip the peaches over using a spatula or palette knife and continue to cook for about 2 minutes on the other side, gently basting in the bubbling caramel as they cook.
Gently place 3 peach halves on each plate. Dollop a spoonful of the softly whipped cream on the side (or use an ice cream scoop for a perfect round) and sprinkle with toasted flaked almonds. Serve and enjoy!
The video above will help with this recipe.

Video

Notes

Scroll up for a step by step guide on how to make peaches and cream. To store: I personally prefer to serve it freshly made, but any leftover peaches can be left to cool completely, then stored in a tupperware in the fridge for about 3-4 days. To reheat: warm gently in a non-stick frying pan over a low heat before serving as mentioned above. Substitutions: You could use plums or apricots in the autumn in place of peaches. Any stone fruit works.

Nutrition

Calories: 653 kcal
, Carbohydrates: 47 g
, Protein: 6 g
, Fat: 52 g
, Saturated Fat: 31 g
, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3 g
, Monounsaturated Fat: 14 g
, Trans Fat: 0.5 g
, Cholesterol: 146 mg
, Sodium: 157 mg
, Potassium: 433 mg
, Fiber: 4 g
, Sugar: 42 g
, Vitamin A: 2587 IU
, Vitamin C: 10 mg
, Calcium: 103 mg
, Iron: 1 mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.