Grilled-Fruit Bruschetta with Honey Mascarpone

By KrissyW330

This knife-and-fork dessert from Bottega pastry chef Michael Glissman is a fantastic showcase for seasonal fruit at its peak; caramelizing the fruit on the grill intensifies its flavor. The grilled bread served alongside soaks up the sweet juices.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon dried lavender buds
• 4 large apricots, halved and pitted
• 4 nectarines, halved and pitted
• 1/2 pound sweet cherries, pitted
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 cup mascarpone
• 2 tablespoons honey
• Eight 1-inch-thick slices of peasant bread
• 8 rosemary skewers, most of the leaves stripped off

Details

Servings 8

Preparation

Step 1

Put the sugar and lavender in a spice grinder and grind to a powder. In a large bowl, combine the lavender sugar with the apricots, nectarines, cherries, lemon juice, orange zest and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Toss well and season lightly with salt and pepper. Let stand for 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir the mascarpone with the honey and season with pepper. Brush the bread slices on both sides with olive oil.
3. Light a grill. Thread the fruit onto the rosemary skewers; reserve any juices in the bowl. Grill the bread over high heat until lightly charred and crisp, about 30 seconds per side. Grill the fruit skewers over moderate heat, basting a few times with the reserved juices, until lightly charred and just tender, about 4 minutes per side.
4. Spread the honey mascarpone on the grilled bread and halve each slice. Transfer to a platter. Slide the fruit off the skewers onto the bread, drizzle some of the juices over the fruit and serve.

Make Ahead The honey mascarpone can be refrigerated overnight. The fruit skewers and bread can be grilled and kept at room temperature for up to 2 hours.