When it comes to dessert, most of the time I love something fruity. And the floral, almond-like flavor of apricots is just so underutilized in my opinion. I love to cook with them in spring and summer especially. Fresh apricots are in season from early May to July, but you can get them imported throughout the year from other temperate regions.
This easy recipe amplifies apricots' natural sweetness with honey. To add even more depth, I whip up an entirely dairy-free ricotta cream, that balances the dessert with the perfect amount of richness to complement the bright apricots. This whipped ricotta has a subtle sweetness, it's really luxurious, and no one will even believe it's dairy-free. It's wonderful paired with fresh berries, scones...you can find a dozen uses for it outside of this dish.
This fruity dessert is not only delicious, but also a healthier option, perfect for those seeking a light and indulgent treat. And it comes together in just about 10 minutes! Let me show you how it's done.
How to Cook the Apricots
Once you've sliced the apricots in half, you can twist out the pit. No need to remove the skin or anything!
I set them into a stainless steel pan, cut side down and drizzle a little honey overtop (preferably a dark, local honey for the best flavor). Add in a half cup of water and turn the stove to medium-high heat. Shake the apricots a little to get them mixed with the honey and water, and let them cook for 4-5 minutes without moving them around until they're slightly browned on the bottom.
Flip them over with a heat-proof spatula and continue cooking for another 4-5 minutes until the apricots are soft but not falling apart.
Take the pan of apricots off the heat and set aside for a minute.
How to Make the Whipped Ricotta
The ricotta only takes a couple of minutes to prep, which makes it easy to do while the main dish is cooking. Or you can prep it ahead of time and store it in the fridge for later.
To make it, you'll whisk together some dairy-free ricotta and some dairy-free unsweetened plain yogurt. Add in some more honey, plus the zest of a whole lemon and the juice of half of that lemon. (Reserve the other half for serving). Sprinkle in a bit of sea salt to balance out the flavor. Whisk it again until smooth.
If you're serving the dish right away, scoop the ricotta cream onto a serving platter or individual plates and smooth out with a spoon for a creamy base.
How to Serve the Dessert
Scoop the apricots out of the pan and place them cut side up over the whipped ricotta. Spoon over any extra pan juices. Then drizzle over a good balsamic vinegar glaze. I have this one from Whole Foods called Olivier—it's a 25-year-aged balsamic vinegar that is so oaky and rich. It's just the best that I've had.
Pluck off some small sprigs of mint to add some greenery and a fresh herbal note, and then squeeze some lemon juice in a sprinkle overtop. You can serve this as is or store it all in the fridge for later and serve chilled (just wait until the end to add the lemon juice so it stays bright).
It's so light, fruity, and creamy—it's the perfect way to end a meal. Give this fruit dessert a try, share it with someone you care about, and let me know what you think!
(P.S. - If you want to know my picks for the best dairy-free yogurts, cheeses and more, check out this post!)
Caramelized Apricots over Whipped Ricotta | Dairy-Free
8
servings5
minutes10
minutesIngredients
16 fresh apricots, cut in half, pit removed and discarded
1⁄3 cup honey
- For the Whipped Ricotta
1 cup Kite Hill Dairy-Free Ricotta
2⁄3 cup Kite Hill Dairy-Free Yogurt (unsweetened plain)
1⁄3 cup honey
1 lemon, juiced and zested
pinch salt
- To finish
aged balsamic vinegar
mint leaves
Directions
- Cook the Apricots
- Put the apricots cut side up in a pan and add 1/3 cup honey. Add 1/2 cup water and place on medium high heat on the stove until the bottoms start to brown a little bit, approximately 4-5 minutes.
- Whisk together the whipped ricotta ingredients, reserving 1/2 of the lemon. Spread the mixture along the bottom of a serving platter.
- Flip the apricots over so the cut side is down and continue cooking until the syrup reduces and the apricots are soft. Spoon the apricots onto the serving platter, drizzle with any remaining syrup in the pan. Drizzle with balsamic and sprinkle fresh mint leaves over top. Serve immediately or chill in the fridge until service (wait to drizzle the balsamic and add the mint until service time). Enjoy!
Peas are a polarizing vegetable...and it's hard to get past that when you've had a bad experience with them in the past. Julia's family grew up with only ever having canned peas with butter, so anything with the word "pea" faces an uphill battle.
But sugar snap peas are one pea that I'm working on rebranding as THE side in our house. The crunch factor, the natural sweetness, the nutritional value? I mean, sugar snap peas have less starch than regular peas and are high in vitamin C, vitamin K, and fiber. Plus, they're delicious. What's not to love?
The best part is that they are really quick to prepare, and feel much fancier than regular peas. This blistered sugar snap pea recipe only takes 5 minutes—just a couple of minutes to prep and less than three minutes to cook. It's a great spring and summer side dish, but you can make it all year. Let me show you how it's done.
How to Prepare Sugar Snap Peas
I get a couple of bags of organic sugar snap peas, which I skip washing because I don't want them to steam. I figure organic means that they're clean enough!
Then I'll snap off the little tough strings at the end which can get, well, stringy when you eat them. It's a little bit tedious, but I find people enjoy them more.
How to Cook Sugar Snap Peas
While I'm prepping the peas, I set a high-sided stainless steel pan on medium-high to high heat. Once that's heated, I'll add avocado oil to the pan since it can take the high heat.
Next I'll add the peas, shake them around quickly to coat. Then I'll add the soy sauce, and give it a shake. This is where you may want to turn on your vent hood—it can get a little smoky with the high heat, but we really want the peas to blister and almost char so they have a bit of that smokiness.
Finally, I'll add the white wine vinegar and the honey, and stir or shake again so everything is evenly coated. You don't want to stir or shake continuously, as you want the peas to have good contact with the hot pan to get some color. Some freshly cracked black pepper is perfect to add here. I skip the salt since the soy sauce has some in it.
Then every 30 seconds or so, you can shake or stir the peas. I cook them just until the liquids have thickened up a bit and the peas are cooked but still have a crunch. This was a total of about 2.5 minutes for me from when the peas hit the pan to when I took them off the heat.
Remove the sugar snap peas to a platter and serve them warm!
What to Serve with Sugar Snap Peas
This side dish is so fresh with a light sweet savoriness and a pleasing crunch. It goes great with Asian dishes like sweet and sour chicken or Massaman curry. I've also served it with grilled chicken or leg of lamb. It's so fast, pretty inexpensive, and uses mostly pantry ingredients.
I hope you enjoy this recipe—let me know what you think in the comments!
Blistered Sugar Snap Peas with Honey
4
servings2
minutes3
minutesIngredients
4 cups fresh sugar snap peas (approximately 16 ounces)
1 tbsp avocado oil
1 tbsp soy sauce (I'm using 50% less sodium San-J gluten-free tamari)
1 tbsp white wine vinegar (or rice vinegar)
2 tbsp honey
to taste freshly cracked black pepper
Directions
- Wash and clean the peas. Place a flat bottom sauté pan on the stove on high heat for 3-4 minutes
- Once the pan is very hot, add the avocado oil immediately followed by the peas (turn on the ventilation fan - it's going to smoke a bit).
- Toss the peas around until they turn darker green and start to look glossy, cooking on high heat the whole time. Add the soy sauce, vinegar and honey and toss. Cook until liquid reduces to a syrup consistency (approximately 2-3 minutes total). Serve warm.
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