Poached Apricots
One of my favorite things about being a CSA member is the freedom to experiment. When I get something in the basket that is not a particular favorite of mine, I think, “Well, at least I don’t have to worry about how it turns out!” If the dish is delicious, great. If it’s terrible, well, I didn’t like it that much to start with! (See: roasting peppers, watermelon salad and watermelon limeade)
I have strong feelings when it comes to fruit, and clearly ranked preferences. To me, apricots don’t make the cut. They just aren’t juicy. Thus, I was free to cook with abandon! But the lack of love also meant I wasn’t interested in tackling a tart. Enter poaching. It takes 5 minutes. I had the ingredients. (Oh, who am I kidding? This is always my recipe selection process, whether I like the main item or not.)
In the name of science and your taste buds, I made two batches. One used simple syrup. One used fabulous Egyptian honey, courtesy of Cybèle! I was originally inspired by this recipe, which features greek yogurt. Since I love yogurt and honey, I was sure that one would be the tastier. In the end, my personal preference? I’d use the simple syrup. Turns out I like my honey straight.
Poached Apricots
- 4 or more apricots (just don’t crowd them in the pan)
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup sugar or 1/4 cup honey
- half a vanilla pod, scraped
- 4-8 lightly smashed cardamom pods (optional)
In a small saucepan, heat water, sugar/honey, vanilla and cardamom pods on medium-high heat, until all the sweetener is dissolved. Halve the apricots, removing the pits. Reduce the heat to a light simmer, and put the apricots in the pan.
Poach for 2 to 5 minutes, turning once. Don’t overpoach! (The apricots will fall apart if you do.) How do you know how long to poach for? The drier the apricot, the longer you should go, I noticed.
Remove the apricots from the poaching syrup. Raise the heat again, and reduce the syrup until it’s at least twice as thick. Pour some of the thickened syrup on the apricots. (Put the rest in a jar. Use it to make yourself cocktails.)
Eat warm, or stick it in the fridge and eat whenever. Try not to drip syrup all over yourself when you do. And now I’m actually kind of looking forward to the apricots coming in this week’s basket!
