Caramel Peach Torte

I am a bit of a fanatic for two things:

1. Dessert.  Really in any form, because my sweet tooth is a straight up liability.
2. Summer in Minnesota.  It’s short and beloved.  So any chance I have to celebrate it is a win.

I must be rubbing off on my boys, because my oldest came home with a giant box he bought during a weekend at the lake.  Don’t get me wrong, we easily downed a bunch as snacking food.  But when I say “brought home a box”, I mean a whole box.  So my baking brain started turning.

I love a little “peaches and cream” anything. In the dead of winter, I’m down for a full-fledged cheesecake, but my summer preference leans a little lighter.  I also, as previously shown across so many recipes, love caramel.  Oh, and brown butter. 

Cooking Notes

To get started, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Prepare an 8X8 cake pan with some nonstick spray or line it with some parchment paper.

In a medium sized bowl, mix together graham cracker crumbs, browned butter, brown sugar and salt. Pour out the mixture into your cake pan and press the crust out to the edges.  You want the bottom of the pan evenly covered.

Bake the crust for 10 minutes. Set the cooked crust aside and allow it to cool completely.

Beat the softened cream cheese with a mixer until smooth. Slowly add the powdered sugar, lemon juice, vanilla and salt until fully combined. In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream to soft peaks. Gently fold it into the cream cheese mixture.  You want the whipped cream to maintain some of its height. The result should be a lighter, creamier cream cheese filling.

Spread the cream cheese topping evenly over the cooled crust. Place the pan in the refrigerator and allow to chill for 30-60 minutes.

While the pan is chilling, add butter to a small saucepan.  Melt the butter over low to medium heat, and allow to brown lightly.  You’ll see some cooked specks in the bottom of the pan and the butter will start to have almost a nutty smell to it.

When the butter has turned a light brown, stir in the brown sugar and kosher salt. Cut the peaches into small chunks and add to the butter mixture. Cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring gently, until they soften but still hold their shape.

In a small measuring cup, whisk together the heavy cream and cornstarch until smooth. Pour the cream and cornstarch into the pan.  Stir the peach mixture and cook for another 30–60 seconds.  The sauce will thicken slightly, which helps the peach topping to set up over the cream cheese filling.

Remove the pan from the heat and carefully stir in the vanilla.  The peach and caramel mixture may bubble up slightly.  Set the pan aside and allow the peach mixture to cool to room temperature.

Spoon the cooled peaches evenly over the cream cheese filling. I use my offset spatula to make sure it’s spread to the edges of the pan.  Cover the pan with some plastic wrap or tinfoil and return to the refrigerator.  The whole torte needs to chill for 3-4 hours before serving.

When ready to serve, whip the heavy cream, powdered sugar and vanilla together, to reach soft peaks.

For a pretty serving, cut the torte into squares and serve with a small, or large, scoop of whipped cream.  As is common in my house, my boys just took a fork to the cake pan.  To each his or her own.