With crunchy candied nuts and velvety smooth vanilla custard, this simple recipe for baked stone fruit is perfect for sweater weather!
Roasting stone fruits, such as peaches, plums, nectarines, and apricots is a terrific way to showcase late summer’s bounty. A drizzle of homemade vanilla custard makes it even more delicious!
Custard comes in many forms. For example, ice cream made with egg yolks, homemade pudding, and even pumpkin pie filling are all types of custard. The formula to make custard from scratch is almost always the same. Milk or cream, egg yolks, and sugar are cooked together until a desired thickness is reached. For this recipe, we made custard with a thinner, more pourable consistency. It’s so good drizzled over baked stone fruit warm from the oven!
We love a sprinkle of these candied walnuts with cinnamon and brown sugar on top of the roasted fruit, however, they’re made in a separate recipe. If you do have time, they’re simple to make and we recommend not skipping them if you can help it. That being said, store-bought candied nuts will also work just fine.
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💖Why You’ll Love This Recipe
✔️ It’s something different to serve for dessert.
✔️ You can mix and match the fruit to your taste or the season.
✔️ This recipe is easy to make!
📋Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
- Stone Fruit: look for fruit that is ripe but not mushy, with few blemishes.
- 10% Cream—sometimes called blend, half-and-half, or light coffee cream.
- Candied Nuts—make your own or use store bought.
Ingredient Substitutions
- Stone Fruit: use peaches, plums, nectarines, apricots, or even pears. You can mix and match the fruit however you like.
- 10% Cream: any cream between 10% and 18% will work. And truly, most milk or cream will work depending on how thick you want the custard to be.
- Vanilla Extract: almond extract is a wonderful substitute for vanilla in this recipe.
- Honey: you can swap out the honey 1:1 for maple syrup.
Use the JUMP TO RECIPE button at the top, or scroll to the bottom of the post to see the printable recipe card with full ingredient measurements and complete instructions.
👩🍳Method
STEP 1: slice the fruit in half from top to bottom and remove the pits. Lay the fruit, skin side down, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Drizzle the top with the honey.
STEP 2: bake the fruit in the oven until slightly soft. Remove from the oven and cool slightly on a wire rack.
STEP 3: place all of the custard ingredients in a medium-sized pot and whisk together until smooth.
STEP 4: set the pot over low-medium heat and cook the custard, stirring often, until thick.
STEP 5: the custard is done when it coats the back of a spoon. Once thick, remove the pot from the heat. The custard will continue to thicken as it cools.
STEP 6: place one warm peach half, and one warm plum half in a bowl. Top the baked stone fruit with a drizzle of custard, and a sprinkle of candied nuts (if using).
💡Top Tips
- You can chop the fruit into small chunks if you like. Note the baking time will reduce if the pieces are cut smaller.
- To prevent scorching, cook the custard over low-medium heat.
- If the custard separates at all after cooling, simply whisk it back together.
📝Recipe Notes
- We use large eggs in the custard.
- If you don’t plan to serve the custard immediately, pour it into a shallow dish that has a lid. Lay a piece of plastic wrap over the surface of the custard and gently press out any air bubbles. The plastic will prevent the custard from forming a skin (a layer of slightly dry custard on top).
- Both baked fruit and custard can be stored in airtight containers with lids for up to four days.
❓Recipe FAQ
Start by looking at the colour of the fruit. It should be vibrant and saturated (colour not liquid). Dull washed out colours are not good. Next look for blemishes. Check for bruises, spots, nicks, and scrapes. Choose the least blemished of the bunch. And lastly, gently press the skin. Ripe fruit should yield slightly to your touch without being mushy.
Two main factors come into play when making custard, and both are related to heat. First, custard should cook over low-medium heat. If the custard shows any sign of sticking to the bottom of the pot, reduce the heat immediately. Second, use a thermometer. Using a thermometer is a surefire way to achieve accuracy and consistency. Custards begin to set around 160ºF (71ºC) and are generally considered done at 170º-172ºF (77º-78ºF).
Only if it’s a canned version. Homemade custard should always be cooked to a temperature of at least 160ºF (71ºC) and is generally considered done at 170º-172ºF (77º-78ºF).
🍑More Stone Fruit Recipes
Recipe
Baked Stone Fruit With Custard & Candied Nuts
Description
Equipment
- Measuring cups and spoons or a digital kitchen scale
- baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Wire rack
- Medium sized pot
- Whisk
Ingredients
For The Baked Stone Fruit
- 2 peaches, approximately 7 oz. (200 grams)
- 2 plums, approximately 7 oz. (200 grams)
- ¼ cup honey
For the Custard
- 2 cups 10%-18% cream
- 6 egg yolks, approximately 120 grams
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup sugar
- ¼ cup candied walnuts, for serving, optional
Instructions
Bake The Stone Fruit
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Slice the peaches and plums in half from top to bottom and remove the pits. Lay the fruit, skin side down, on the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle the top of the fruit with the honey. Place the sheet in the oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until soft. Remove from the oven and cool slightly on a wire rack.
Make The Custard
- Place the cream, egg yolks, vanilla, and sugar in a medium-sized pot. Whisk everything together until smooth.
- Place the pot over medium-low heat and cook the custard, stirring often, until thick. The custard is done when it coats the back of a spoon. Once thick, remove the pot from the heat. The custard will continue to thicken as it cools. To serve, place one warm peach half, and one warm plum half in each bowl. Top with a drizzle of warm or cold custard, and a sprinkle of candied nuts (if using).
Notes
- We use large eggs in the custard.
- If you don’t plan to serve the custard immediately, pour it into a shallow dish that has a lid. Lay a piece of plastic wrap over the surface of the custard and gently press out any air bubbles. The plastic will prevent the custard from forming a skin (a layer of slightly dry custard on top).
- Both baked fruit and custard can be stored in airtight containers with lids for up to four days.
Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar says
These photos are stunning. What an awesome way to eat fruit and indulge at the same time.
Ashley Colbourne says
Thanks Katrina!
Ksenia @ At the Immigrant's Table says
Gorgeous photography, I love the moody lighting and atmosphere. I, too, prefer my fruit cut up – that usually allows for more caramelization; but this does look like a great and simple recipe. Thanks for sharing!
Ashley Colbourne says
Thanks Ksenia! It was even tastier then I orginally thought!
Rebecca @ figs and pigs says
This looks perfect , love pecans. Your photos are beautiful especially the third one down of the fruits. Love it.
Greer says
Looks amazing. I too don’t normaly would eat something like that for desert and figs for all things. But this looks so good
Ashley Colbourne says
Thanks!
kristie @ birchandwild.com says
You created the perfect mood with these photos. I am now craving a fuzzy robe, thick socks, a nice fire in the woodstove and this dessert.
myriam / rhubarb! rhubarb! rhubarb! says
This is so perfectly cozy and joyful. I’m daydreaming of the loveliest scene where you can almost smell these beautiful baked pears wafting out from the oven as the leaves fall on the porch, and an open fire glows from the hearth…