Seasonal ingredient: peaches!
🌞 Peaches (Prunus persica) were originally domesticated in China over 7,500 years ago and were introduced to Europe during or before the era of Alexander the Great. In Malta, peach cultivation has a long history, with production once widespread though in decline before recently making a modest comeback thanks to improved agricultural methods. Enhanced rootstock and irrigation have also helped extend the harvest season, from traditional July-August to now include early varieties in May and late ones through September-October.
Peaches in Malta are prized for their flavor, especially flat peach varieties. The taste is markedly richer due to Malta’s sun-drenched climate and quick-to-market handling. One visitor compared the experience of tasting them to “a party in my mouth,” praising their superior sweetness and tenderness compared to peaches from other regions.
🍝 Ingredients
Peach Cake:
Dry:
300 g all-purpose flour (≈ 2 ½ cups)
180 g granulated sugar (≈ 1 cup) or your preferred sweetener (date syrup, brown sugar)
10 g baking powder (1 packet or 2 tsp)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp salt
Wet:
240 ml plant-based milk (soy) – 1 cup
80 ml neutral oil (sunflower, canola, melted coconut) – ≈ ⅓ cup
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla extract
Fruit:
2 ripe peaches, peeled and diced (≈ 1½ cups total fruit)
Peach and Banana Ice Cream:
2 large peach chopped and frozen
1 banana ripe chopped and frozen
15 Deglet dates or 8 medjool dates (soaked overnight or a few hours in advance)
4 tbsp cashews or almonds (soaked overnight or a few hours in advance)
1 tsp lemon juice
1/2 cup soy milk unsweetened, or plant based milk of choice
🧑🍳 Procedure:
Prepare the ice cream on the same day of consuming, and at least 4 hours in advance.
Blend all the ingredients. You may find that it becomes smoother if you start blending the dates with the milk first and then slowly add the rest of the ingredients. Put the ice cream in the freezer for at least 4 hours. You can stir it a couple of times.
To prepare the cake:
Preheat oven to 180 °C / 350 °F. Grease and lightly flour a 22–24 cm (9 inch) round cake tin.
Combine the plant milk and vinegar in a small bowl — set aside for 5 min to curdle (vegan buttermilk).
In a large bowl, whisk together all dry ingredients.
Stir oil and vanilla into the buttermilk mixture.
Pour the wet over the dry and gently mix until smooth.
Fold in the diced peaches.
Transfer batter to the cake tin. Optional: decorate the top with peach slices and dust with extra cinnamon.
Bake for 35–40 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
⚠️ This ice cream is best consumed on the same day it’s prepared, as it can become very hard if left in the freezer for several hours without being stirred (or if you don’t have an ice cream machine). But be aware that you need to freeze the fruits a day before. Ice cream with natural fruit can also be a nice way to utilize the fruits that have gone too ripe or when you have too much: just freeze them in chunks and use them later on for a refreshing and nurturing ice cream or smoothie.
Recipe adapted from:
The Whole Food Plant Based Cooking Show