The small town of Berlin is big on food and has a special dessert that you have to try on your travels or make at home– the peach dumpling. Just off Main Street, Baked Dessert Cafe offers up these homemade sweet treats, which we tried and filmed on our travels for our “Maryland’s Eastern Shore” TV episode.
At one time Berlin was home to one of the largest peach orchards in the country, so this dessert has deep roots. Imagine ripe local peaches, sliced and sautéed in butter, brown sugar and spices, folded into all butter puff pastry and baked to slightly brown perfection. The pretty dumpling is then topped with peach reduction and homemade caramel sauce. If you can make it to Berlin to try this, do! If not, you can try to make it at home in the meantime. Happy baking and thanks to Robin Tomaselli, owner of Baked Dessert Cafe, for sharing this recipe.
The Original Peach Dumpling Recipe Peach Reduction Sauce and Homemade Caramel
- All Butter Puff Pastry 4 cups
- all-purpose flour 3-1/4 cups
- salted butter, cut into cubes and kept chilled
- 1 cup cold water
1. Sift the flour into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment.
2. Add chilled butter and pulse three to five times until the butter pieces are about the size of peas. Add water to the mixture and pulse again until the dough just comes together. Invert onto floured surface.
3. Using a rolling pin and bench scraper, shape the mass into a long rectangle. Fold one third of the rectangle toward the center. Then fold the other end to the center, like folding a business letter. Rotate the dough 90 degrees.
4. Reshape and roll the dough into a rectangle. Repeat the folding and rotating process three more times for a total of four turns. If the dough becomes soft or sticky during this process, immediately refrigerate until firm.
5. Wrap and refrigerate the dough for at least 45 minutes.
6. After the dough has been refrigerated, unwrap onto a well floured surface. Press the dough down on all sides to seal its shape.
7. Start with the rolling pin at the center. Roll away from you. Return to the center and roll toward you. Repeat the folding and rotating process of the dough two more times for a total a total of six times.
8. After the sixth turn, wrap the finished dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate to make sure it is well-chilled before baking. Puff Pastry keeps in the refrigerator up to three days or frozen for several months.
Homemade Caramel
- 1 Cup Corn Syrup
- 1 Cup Sugar
- 3 T salted Butter
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. pure Vanilla
- 2 Cups Heavy Cream
1. Heat corn syrup and sugar over medium heat until melted and amber in color. Monitor this process closely, you do not want the sugar to burn.
2. Add butter, vanilla and salt and stir until melted. Be careful at this step since these additions will create additional steam and the mixture will increase in volume quickly.
3. Add heavy cream and continue to cook until the sugar mixture is melted and smooth. Add more cream if you desire a thinner consistency. Refrigerate if not using immediately.
Peach Filling
- 8 cups sliced peaches
- 1/2 cup salted butter
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 lemon juiced and zested
- 1 T cinnamon
- 1 tsp. nutmeg
1. Over medium heat, sauté peaches, butter, brown sugar, lemon juice and spices until bubbly and peaches are cooked through.
2. Drain peaches, while reserving the remaining peach liquid. Allow peaches to cool to room temperature, add lemon zest and with kitchen scissors, cut into smaller pieces.
**Peach Reduction Sauce Return Peach Reduction liquid to stove and cook over medium heat until the sauce is reduced by half. Set aside.
3. Remove Puff Pastry Dough to floured surface and roll out to large rectangle. Cut into 3” X 3” squares. Mound Peach Filling onto the center of Puff Pastry squares. Gather the four corners to the center and pinch the middle and sides to close. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.
4. Serve warm topped with Peach Reduction Sauce and homemade Caramel.
