The best cooking is always the simplest. When the ingredients are first rate, a wise cook knows to do no more than is absolutely necessary to bring out their flavor. This is especially true in summer, when produce is at its peak and the heat, even when the air-conditioner is going full blast, makes spending time in the kitchen deeply unappealing.
And when we go back to Savannah and are lucky enough to come home with a pound cake from Mollie Stone (that city's premier wedding cake baker), well: doing the absolute minimum gets even easier, not to mention better.
Peaches with Bourbon over Pound Cake
Peach cobblers, tarts, and jam are all lovely, but this fruit is at its best when it's not cooked and is treated in the simplest ways. Here the added ingredients are intended to enhance the flavor of the peaches and not to call attention to themselves, so this is no time to sling sugar, citrus juice, and whiskey around with careless abandon.
Serves 2
2 medium ripe peaches, preferably freestone
Sugar
About ¼ lemon
About 1 tablespoon bourbon
2 slices pound cake (almond or vanilla flavored but preferably not lemon)
2 scoops vanilla ice cream
1. Wash, peel, halve, and pit the peaches. Cut them into small chunks. Sprinkle them lightly with sugar, a squeeze of lemon juice, and about a tablespoon of bourbon. Toss gently to coat them evenly and let them stand for 20-30 minutes—just until the sugar is completely dissolved. Taste and adjust the flavorings and let stand until the sugar is dissolved.
2. Divide the cake among two small plates, top each with a scoop of ice cream, then evenly spoon the peaches over each. Serve immediately.