Millions of Peaches... and Nectarines

Cooking - yes, more. But the YUMMY kind.

So, over the past several years, I've stated many times that I do not enjoy cooking for myself. Well, I'm now eating my words - and my delightful kitchen experiments. Something in me has changed. I've finally relaxed enough to enjoy my own company. I still don't enjoy cleaning or doing the dishes. I had been avoiding the kitchen, keeping it messy on purpose. I'd have no reason to cook for myself if it was a mess cause I wouldn't want to go in there. Well, it's still a little bit of a mess.

On to the Peaches (and Nectarines). A couple weeks ago I discovered all the Nectarines I brought back from east of the mountains were NOT ripening. And, on top of that, I had LOTS of them. So, I cut them up, pan fried them with some juice or jam or something. I wrote down the recipe, but don't have it handy. Well- that was the beginning of my love affair with grilled Nectarines.

Tonight, after grilling my chicken and fresh green beans, I decided to grill a peach and a nectarine. Below is the experiment and ingredients. While I used it as a dessert, you could also use this as a Sunday morning brunch idea. It would definitely add to the Stonewall Kitchens Gingerbread Pancake mix - not sweet but super yum!

Double Vanilla Maple Pear grilled Peaches

1 Nectarine*
1 Peach*
2 Tbsp Ikea Vanilla Sauce (ja!, Ikea)
2 Tbsp Stonewall Kitchen Maple Vanilla Pear Butter (use this on your pancakes and you won't go back to maple syrup!)
1 Pinch Cinnamon
1 Smidge Cardamom (use sparingly)
1 Dash Freshly Grated Nutmeg (get the grater that looks like a UFO - it's the BEST!)
1 Pinch ground cloves

Cut fruit in half. Place on grill (if done after cooking meat it will often take on the flavor of the meat - I like this!)
Grill for say 5 min or so. Keep an eye on it - the more ripe the fruit, the lower the cooking time. (I put mine on tinfoil on the grill and they still stuck to the foil - a wee bit of butter would have done wonders)
Put the grilled fruit on a plate. Drizzle w/ Ikea Vanilla Sauce. Place a small dollop of the Maple Vanilla Pear Butter on each fruit half. Evenly disperse the spices over each fruit.
Serves 1 hungry person or 2 mostly full and sated, but dessert needing people. Enjoy!

Note: all measurements are approximations
* Fruit may be used at any ripeness point - grill longer if it's less ripe & be sure to test along the way