Pesche Dolci {Italian Peach Cookies}

Posted on Friday, 22nd July 2011 by Grace

Last weekend my sisters, Connie and Anna, came over for a visit and a day of baking. What did we bake? Italian cookies - trays and trays of them. How many are left? Not too many! The Italian Cookie (well in my opinion more of an Italian Pastry) I’m sharing with you today is a very special one, Pesche Dolci – Italian Peach Cookies.

These cookies are generally saved and baked for special occasions, Bridal Showers, Weddings and Religious Holidays. They take a little more effort than your average batch of cookies but the end result is definitely worth the extra effort.

Baking these cookies was a first for me. Why you ask? Well I’ve never been a fan of jam unless of course it’s a berry jam. Traditionally (in our region) these peach cookies are filled with plum jam. I love plums! – Dislike plum jam.

Plum jam? Peach cookies? What? That’s a question I’ve been asking myself for years. I’ve been told the only reason this cookie is called a Peach is because it looks like a peach.

The fillings vary from region to region and family to family. You’ll see the cookies filled with Nutella; various jam fillings, lemon fillings, and Crema Pasticcera. (I love Crema Pasticcera!)

My inquisitive mind had me hunting for the history of the cookie. I wanted to know why they referred to the cookie as a peach. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to find much information. Originally the colour of the cookie was achieved by dipping the cookie in a special Italian liqueur, Alchermes (“Bagna per Dolci” – A bath for sweets).

I did find a bit of information regarding the Alchermes that I almost wish I hadn’t. Alchermes is scarlet red in colour. A very special ingredient, “Kermes”, was added to the liqueur, which in turn provided not only the liqueur’s name but also the striking colour.

What is Kermes? – A small parasitic insect. Hmm…No thanks! In fact I am not the only one that feels that way, when people discovered the colour of Alchermes was achieved by adding the special ingredient the ever-popular Alchermes lost its appeal. I did try to locate a bottle before finding this information but did not have any luck. I think the liqueur may only be available in Italy.

I did notice that Italians continue to use the Alchermes but you will also find many recipes for the cookie in which the Alchermes has been substituted with Rum, Marsala and other spirits. Food colouring is then added to the liqueur to achieve the colouring for the cookie.

I am assuming the cookie received its name because when the cookie is dipped in Alchermes the colour achieved is very similar to the natural colour of a peach. And when the cookie is assembled and decorated it also looks like a peach. I am very happy using White Vermouth and food colouring for my “bagna per dolci”.

I decided to make small peaches and larger peaches. But I didn’t fill my small peaches with plum jam (the usual) I went for a peach jam flavoured mildly with rum instead. Combining the peach jam with a hint of rum was a good choice, very flavourful. Please don’t let my dislike for plum jam put you off using it for a filling; the flavour and texture of the filling is a family favourite.

For the large cookies, in my opinion, there was only one choice – Crema Pasticcera. Let me tell you this – that first bite into “le pesche con la crema pasticcera” was to die for – insanely delicious! I think I may have a new favourite Italian Cookie. Move over Amaretti there’s a new cookie in town.

Filling the cookie with Crema Pasticcera changed the texture of the cookie, it was softer and the natural vanilla flavour combined with that creamy goodness was heaven on earth.

I do hope you’ll give these cookies a try especially if you’re looking for an extra special Italian treat. Coming soon…Bocconetti.

Pesche Dolci {Italian Peach Cookies}

Pesche Dolci {Italian Peach Cookies}
Crema Pasticcera {Italian Pastry Cream}
Ripieni di Marmellata di Pesche {Peach Jam Cookie Filling}

**Please note - I prepared two fillings; in our region the jam filling is traditional and so is the smaller cookie. I decided to make the larger “Pesche” as well and they are traditionally filled with the Crema Pasticcera (I love Crema Pasticcera!). If you’ve never tried the “Pesche” I hope you will try both fillings and sizes the first time you make the cookies and then you can decide which you prefer. Believe it or not in our region the traditional jam used in the filling is plum (doesn’t make a lot of sense to me that is why I settled on a peach jam but the plum is a delicious alternative).

If you are making the larger cookies with Crema Pasticcera it is best to prepare the filling first. This will ensure the crema is cooled and ready for filling when you’ve completed the baking of the cookies.

Pesche Dolci {Italian Peach Cookies}

Makes 5-dozen small cookies & about 3-dozen large cookies

3 large eggs
450 g (2 cups) caster (superfine granules) sugar
237 ml (1 cup) vegetable oil
18 g (2 packages) Dr. Oetker Vanilla Sugar
21 g (1½ packages) Dr. Oetker Baking Powder
237 ml (1 cup) whole milk
750 g (6 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour

Line baking trays with non-stick baking paper or silicone baking mats, set-aside.
In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment beat sugar and eggs on medium speed, 2 to 3 minutes.
Gradually add the oil; continue to beat on medium speed.
Add vanilla sugar and beat to combine.
Dissolve baking powder in milk and then add milk to batter; continue to beat on medium speed until combined.
Reduce mixer speed to low and gradually add the flour; beat to just combine.
Let batter stand for 2 hours before proceeding.
Preheat oven to 180° C (350° F).
To roll cookie dough, wet hands with a little bit of vegetable oil. For small cookies, spoon about 1 teaspoon of cookie dough. For large cookies spoon 2 teaspoons of cookie dough. Roll into balls and place on cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining dough ensuring balls are all the same size. (If you are making small and large cookies as I have do not bake on the same tray because the larger cookies will need a few minutes longer baking time.) (Please keep in mind you will need two cookies for each “Pesche“.)
Bake on middle rack just until starting to turn colour (you do not want them to turn golden), 15 to 25 minutes. (Smaller cookies usually 15 to 17 minutes and larger cookies 20 to 25 minutes. Make sure to watch both small and large cookies at the 14-minute mark to determine baking time for your oven and your size cookie.)
Remove baking sheet from oven and immediately remove cookies from baking sheet and transfer to wire rack.
Immediately begin carving out cookies. Using a sharp paring knife, starting in centre of cookie, carve small holes (about the size of a dime for small cookies and the size of a quarter for larger cookies, making sure you do not carve the holes too deep). Place hollowed out cookie bits and crumbs into a bowl for use in your jam cookie filling. Return cookies to wire rack to cool completely prior to filling.
When all cookies are baked and centres hollowed take a few minutes to prepare cookies to be filled. Match cookies by size and set two aside for each “Pesche“.

Crema Pasticcera {Italian Pastry Cream}

500 ml (2cups) whole milk
1 vanilla bean, split and seeded
6 large egg yolks
180 g (¾ cup + 2½ teaspoons) caster (superfine granules) sugar
40 g (1/3 cup or 5 tablespoons) plain (all-purpose) flour, sifted

In a small saucepan bring milk, vanilla bean, and vanilla bean seeds just to the boil over medium heat. Remove from heat, cover and let steep 10 to 12 minutes.
In a large bowl, using a large hand whisk, cream together egg yolks and sugar until thick and pale.
Add the flour and whisk to well combine.
Gradually, in a steady stream, add the hot milk mixture to the egg mixture; whisking constantly until well combined.
Return the milk-egg mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until thickened, about 3 to 5 minutes.
Remove from heat and strain Crema Pasticcera through a fine mesh sieve into a 20-cm (8 inch) square dish or 23 X 33 cm (9 X13 inch) rectangular dish. Discard solids. (A little tip for you – I remove the vanilla bean; give it a quick rinse and then allow it to dry and use it when I am making syrups or compotes (gives the compote or syrup a hint of vanilla taste) or I also place the vanilla bean in a mason jar (a large one because I continue to add beans and top with more sugar as I go along) with sugar and make my own vanilla sugar (make sure the vanilla bean is completely dry before storing with sugar.) (This time I saved the vanilla bean and used it to make my stems for decorating the completed Pesche.) Place a sheet of plastic wrap directly onto Crema Pasticcera to prevent a skin from forming while cooling. When Crema Pasticcera has completely cooled place in refrigerator to chill until ready to fill cookies.

Ripieni di Marmellata di Pesche (Peach Jam Cookie Filling}

Cookie crumbs and bits
500 ml (2 cups) peach jam (if the jam is chunky process in a food processor until almost smooth)
7.5 ml (¼-ounce or ½-tablespoon) Rum (You can add more or less Rum to suit your taste.)

Place cookie crumbs and bits into a food processor; pulse to a fine crumb.
In a small bowl stir together the cookie crumbs and peach jam.
Add the rum and stir to combine.
Cover and chill in refrigerator until ready to fill cookies.

Assembling Pesche Dolci

59 ml (2 ounces) White Vermouth
Yellow liquid food colouring
Red liquid food colouring
Caster sugar (superfine granules), for rolling cookies
Vanilla bean, seeds removed (save seeds for another use), cut into thin pieces resembling stems, for decorating cookies
Fresh mint leaves, for decorating cookies

Place 1-ounce White Martini into a small (deep bowl). Place the other ounce of Martini in another small (deep) bowl. Add yellow food colouring to one bowl and red food colouring to the other bowl. Add enough food colouring to achieve a bright yellow and a bright red. Transfer filling (Peach Jam Filling or Crema Pasticcera) to a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip. Tip some caster sugar onto a flat plate (for rolling cookies), set-aside.
Pipe a small dollop of filling into each hollowed cavity and then pipe a little more filling on one cookie half. Join both halves to form “Pesche”. Run your clean finger around filling to remove any excess when sandwiched together. Repeat until all cookies are filled and formed.
To colour Pesche, dip top half of joined cookie in yellow food colouring (pat cookie on a sheet of paper towel to remove any excess before dipping the other half). Dip bottom half of cookie in red food colouring making sure it meets and covers the yellow half just a tad. (To get the colouring correct, stand the joined cookie up so that one cookie half is on the left and one cookie half is on the right with the filling in between, you want to dip the top half of the joined cookie in yellow and the bottom half in red.)
Make sure to dab off any excess colouring; roll cookie in sugar. Stand cookie upright.
To decorate add a sprig of mint and a vanilla stem.
Buon Appetito!

Tags: after school treat, afternoon tea, cookies, crema pasticcera, dessert, desserts, food, food photography, food photos, fruit, fruit desserts, gourmet cookies, individual dessert, individual desserts, Italian cookie, Italian cookies, Italian dessert, Italian desserts, Italian sweet, mini desserts, pastries, pastry, pastry cream
Posted in Baking & Pastry, Baking Mise en Place, Custards, Creams & Mousses, Eggs, Pastry Doughs & Batter, Recipes

Comments (28)

28 Responses to “Pesche Dolci {Italian Peach Cookies}”

Says:
July 22nd, 2011 at 1:58 pm
Wow- beautiful! What an appropriate cookie for this time of year.
Says:
July 22nd, 2011 at 2:01 pm
How absolutely gorgeous those look. They do look like peaches, glamorous peaches. The recipe sounds delicious, too.
Says:
July 22nd, 2011 at 2:12 pm
I’m in love with these!!! So adorable and I bet incredibly delicious, great job!
Alexis Says:
July 22nd, 2011 at 2:34 pm
omgoodness I would love to try them with the crema filling!!! Delicious! These are Ricardo’s favourite cookies on the Italian Cookie Tray I called them “burger cookies” when we first started dating – the first time I saw them, I thought they looked like mini burgers (when held horizantally and the filling was peeking through the edges).
Says:
July 22nd, 2011 at 4:08 pm
What beautiful cookes! Thank you for sharing that interesting history with us. I think I’d also prefer the peach jam to the plum.
Says:
July 22nd, 2011 at 4:09 pm
I had to do a doubletake. These look incredible.
Says:
July 22nd, 2011 at 4:13 pm
These are awesome looking!! I would love to try them.
Says:
July 22nd, 2011 at 5:24 pm
Leave it to you and your sisters to make these beautiful cookies. Gorgeous & I bet very tasty
Says:
July 22nd, 2011 at 5:53 pm
Your pesche dolci are absolutely gorgeous! I blogged about them some time ago using nutella and crema pasticcera as the filling. I use cherry brandy instead of alchermes. Your recipe is slightly different so I will try yours. You have decorated them so beautifully!!! How long do you think they would keep?
Says:
July 22nd, 2011 at 6:17 pm
OMG these are jaw droppers! They are beautiful! No wonder they are made for special occasions. I want to try these so bad…but it looks very complicating. So I will wait for a special occasion to make these. Tomorrow would be good =)
Grace Says:
July 22nd, 2011 at 6:44 pm
Marcellina I would like to try adding the nutella next time, did you fill with both or did you do some with nutella and some with crema? Marcellina I decided to try freezing them with the crema and to my astonishment they are just as tasty after thawing in the fridge, I couldn’t believe it. I know my sister freezes the ones with jam all the time and they taste just like if she baked them that day. I made the crema after my sisters left and I filled. I wanted them to try it but knew I wouldn’t be seeing them until this weekend and I wanted the cookies to keep, it was a very nice surprise when they tasted just as good as when I filled them the day they were baked. I would like test and see how long the crema will keep in the freezer. I indulged in one today, 5 days later and the crema is still holding up fine. I spoke with my sister today and mentioned I placed them in the fridge and she too thought it wouldn’t work and was just as surprised as I was. If it works it will be nice for weddings and showers, being able to prepare ahead of time would be wonderful rather than filling day of the event. Funny you should mention the decorating. I had quite the time with the food colouring. I started with a gel paste food colouring and it did not work, for some reason it would not dissolve in the liquor, odd don’t you think? I prefer gel paste and very rarely do I have the liquid on hand, I had to run out for colouring that day.
Grace Says:
July 22nd, 2011 at 6:49 pm
Thanks Marla, it was a great day.
Grace Says:
July 22nd, 2011 at 6:53 pm
Thank you Evan, they were fun to make.
Lydia Says:
July 23rd, 2011 at 10:18 am
Nothing can beat these cookies for presentation. They are beautiful — gorgeous on a dessert table. Had them at an Italian wedding two years ago. Was determined to learn how to make them. Surfed the internet for a week. Read recipe after recipe and tried 7 and finally arrived at my favorite “peachesrevisited.” After all those tries, love to pass along some tips. To ensure balls are uniform so that they fit together perfectly when sandwiched, take two sheets of 8 1/2 x 11 bond paper. Trace circles leaving 1 inch apart for cookies to spread. I use the base of a mini tupper ware container to do this — 1 1/4 circle. 9 circles per sheet. Place these two sheets on a large baking tray. Top with parchment paper. Place the round balls of dough on the circles. Lightly tap, yes lightly — do not flatten as cookies shouldn’t be flat when sandwiched together — must be round like a peach. To form balls: Use a small cookie scoup to scoup balls of dough. Seems to go faster if you scoup out a whole bunch of balls of dough. Dump them on a parchment paper. Cover them with a damp cloth to prevent dough from drying. Form round balls. Place the round balls of dough on the traced circles and tap balls of dough till the perfectly fit the circles. To hollow centers: I use a melon baller, the larger end. Works perfectly; however timing is important. The cookies should be slightly warm, not hot or not cold when you scoup. Filling: Ganache, some cookie crumbs, toasted chopped hazelnuts — NOT NUTELLA — TOO SWEET. Alternatively, jam or pastry cream. To color: Mix red and yellow for a perfect orangey/peachy color. I use liquid color mixed in vodka. I paint the peaches with a wide pastry brush. Rosetta of MyCalabria demonstrated these cookies on the Martha Stewart Christmas Show — not sure if the video is still available. Have seen these made up like pears, and always wondered how they shaped them! These are the most beautiful cookies in the world and when filled with Ganache they aren’t sweet at all. Got to try your recipe Grace.
Says:
July 23rd, 2011 at 11:22 am
Grace
those cookies are simply magnificent! You need to have your own Italian cooking show!

Cheers
Dennis
Says:
July 23rd, 2011 at 12:38 pm
These are very cute.
Julia Says:
July 23rd, 2011 at 1:22 pm
I know I say this every time, but I think this is my new favorite dessert of yours! Beautiful, just beautiful! Great job, as usual!
Grace Says:
July 23rd, 2011 at 1:33 pm
You are so sweet Dennis – that would be so much fun!
bobpony Says:
July 23rd, 2011 at 2:31 pm
Beautiful cookies! I’ve got to ask though, what is ‘white martini’? I’ve been googling and can’t quite figure out what you’re using here. Thx!
Grace Says:
July 23rd, 2011 at 3:07 pm
Okay feeling a little foolish on this end, I keep all my liquor in the cold room in the basement and whenever I’m baking and preparing my mise en place it’s the one thing I always forget to prepare. Inevitably I am calling out to the kids to get me the different types of liqueur and alcohol. “It’s not here Mom” “yes it is, if you look on the bottle you will see White Martini” – I always refer to the vermouth as white martini because that’s what you can see in big lock letters on the bottle – can’t believe I wrote that not once but twice. Martini is a brand name for an Italian company that produces “White Vermouth”.
Says:
July 23rd, 2011 at 4:44 pm
Those are sooo cute! I love them!
Says:
July 24th, 2011 at 6:50 pm
Gorgeous cookies! They really do look like peaches…and I like that you’ve provided two yummy filling options~
ando Says:
July 25th, 2011 at 3:32 am
question, how do you take your pictures with a black background? is that just a special place u take them or is it edited to look like a pure black background?
Grace Says:
July 25th, 2011 at 11:38 am
My sister was nice enough to sew me a sweep. I picked up the fabric from a local fabric store (made sure it wasn’t a shiny fabric) and she stitched it up and she attached velcro to one side which makes it very easy for me to attach to my light box. I’m having a hard time switching back to other sweeps because I love the look of the black drop.
Says:
July 25th, 2011 at 7:33 pm
These are so beautiful, Grace!
Says:
July 26th, 2011 at 4:36 am
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Says:
July 26th, 2011 at 7:47 am
These are gorgeous! Beautiful job.. I’ve never had these so I’ll have to try out both fillings!
Says:
July 26th, 2011 at 8:48 pm
Lovely peach cookies ..which dont have any peach They look great but I would skip the “special agent” as well!