Life isn’t all peaches and cream, but sometimes it can be. It’s the truly perfect peachy micro-moments of unquantifiable bliss that make life worth living. Don’t get caught up in trying to beat the monotony of life with canned peach-attempts at happiness, pick the perfect moments and savour the sweetness while it lasts. Enjoy those juicy bursts of peachy perfection that give us the real warm, fuzzy navel feeling inside.

Peaches and cream chilled soup perfection

6 very ripe peaches (can also be over ripe, or slightly bruised for this recipe) 1 Tbsp freshly grated ginger 2 Tbsp runny honey 500 ml 2% or homogenized milk 250 ml of whipping cream pinch of salt honey as needed Get a large pot of water on to boil. Meanwhile fill a large bowl halfway with ice and add enough cold water to fill the rest of the bowl ¾ of the way up. Leaving enough room for the peaches to fit in the bowl. When the water is boiling rapidly, drop all the peaches in at once. Careful not to get splashed with hot water. Boil the peaches for 30-60 seconds to loosen the skin and then  scoop them out with a slotted spoon and dunk immediately into the ice bath to cool for 1 minute. Use your fingers to peel away the loosened skin and discard. If the skin does not come away easily simply pop it in the boiling water for another 30 seconds and back into the ice bath to cool. Now you can tear open the peaches using your fingers and discard the pits. Pile all the peaches in a medium pot and add the milk, honey, pinch of salt and fresh grated ginger. The whipping cream goes in much later. Over medium heat bring the pot to a bare simmer. When you see little bubbles forming quickly around the edges of the pot and some steam rising from the middle you can remove it from the heat and get ready to purée the soup. Using a stand up blender and blending while hot makes your soup super smooth, much better than a hand blender. However, puréeing hot soup in a stand up blender requires kitchen know-how so you don’t end up splatter painting your kitchen and face with the hard to colour match “peach explosion”. Remove the little plastic thingy center hole from the lid of your stand up mixer, and cover the hole with a folded dry tea towel. (This stops it from being airtight, which would cause an ugly kick at the start—although the steam can sometimes get slightly warm on your hand.) Fill up your blender only half way and do batches. Start on low, and build up the speed incrementally. When the soup is looking smooth, turn it off. Pour the soup into a container, wrap the top tightly with plastic wrap and get it into the fridge to cool for at least 2 hours. When you are ready to serve get a large bowl and a big whisk and beat the whipping cream until it is nice and thick. Soft peaks if you want to get technical. Add 1/3 of the whipped cream to the peach purée and mix it in until smooth. Add another 1/3 of the whipping cream and mix in. Now add the last of the whipped cream and stir it all until smooth. To serve, simply pour the thick creamy soup into lovely chilled bowls or teacups. You could also add a splash of champagne to each serving or dig out that bottle of peaches schnapps. As seen in Swerve Magazine...