Grilled peaches with honey-rum butter

It’s the season for peaches. Ripe peaches are fragile, and easily bruised, so peaches tend to be sold on the hard side. Give them a few days on a kitchen counter, and they’ll finish ripening and smell wonderful. For a sweet ending to a summer meal, try running halved peaches under the broiler.

Grilled peaches with honey-rum butter

4 firm, ripe peaches
3 Tbs. sweet butter
3 Tbs. golden honey
3 Tbs. golden or dark rum
pinch salt

Preheat broiler. Heat butter in a small pan, letting it turn a little amber. Halve peaches following their natural crease and ease out stones. Brush butter over cut surfaces of each peach and arrange peach halves, cut-side down, on a foil-lined tray. Run under the hot broiler for a minute, just until you can easily pull the skin from the peach halves. Peel peaches (discard skins.). Turn peaches cut-side up.

Add honey, rum and a good pinch of salt to the hot butter. Stir smooth. Brush the cut surfaces of the peaches with honey-rum butter, trickle some into each cavity (where the stone was) and return under the broiler for 5 minutes, basting once or twice, until the peaches are tender and their cut surfaces are nicely caramelized. Serve hot peaches with ice-cream or cream, with more warm honey-rum butter poured over the fruit. Serves 4.