DAILY DINNERS

Set the oven to 220C/425F/gas mark 7. First, make the confectioner’s custard. Pour the milk into a saucepan. Split the vanilla pod and scrape seeds into the milk. Toss in the pod, too. Gently simmer for 2-3 minutes to infuse.

Separate the eggs. Beat the yolks with the sugar until pale. Sift the two flours and add to the mix. Stir gently. Add the infused milk. Remove the vanilla pod (rinse and reserve for later). Return it all to the pan and cook, stirring constantly, until the custard thickens, then stir gently for a further minute to ensure the flour is quite cooked. Tip the custard through a sieve to put paid to any foiling of a smooth finish. Decant into a clean bowl, cover well and refrigerate.

On a cool, lightly floured surface, roll out the puff pastry to roughly 12cm wide, 24cm long. With a very sharp knife, slice 8 squares, roughly 6cm in length. Put these on a sheet, then refrigerate or freeze for at least an hour before cooking. They will freeze well for a day or two if wrapped very well.

Before beginning to cook the peaches, have ready the following: a tray upon which to put the cooked peach slices and please cover your arms against the splashes.

Cut the peaches in half or, if particularly large, into quarters or sixths. Put the sugar and reserved vanilla pod in a wide, heavy-based frying pan over a gentle heat. When the sugar begins to bubble a bit and bronzed sugar pushes through to the surface, raise the heat. Lift the pan and gently swirl the sugar into the forming caramel. When it is completely liquid and coloured a rich mahogany, tip in the peach slices very gently. They may sputter, so stand back and beware of sugar sparks. Boil the caramel wildly for a minute – the bold may wish to toss the pan! – or merely gently stir with a wooden spoon so the caramel can coat and cook into the peach slices.

Remove the pan from the heat and tip the caramelised peach slices and syrup on to the waiting tray. Put the squares of pastry on a lined baking sheet. Make a wash with an egg yolk and a spoonful of cream. Brush the squares with it. With a sharp knife, score out a square within the pastry, leaving a shallow border. Put the baking sheet in the hot oven. Turn the heat down to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the pastry is risen and golden. Reduce the heat to 150C/300F/gas mark 2 for a further 10 minutes, or until the pastry cases are quite crisp. Remove and set aside to cool.

Lightly whip the cream into peaks, then fold in the confectioner’s custard until a cloud of cream forms.

Remove the inner lid of the little sarcophagus and discard any uncooked pastry. Fill the hole with spoonfuls of custard cream. Remove the skin from the caramelised peaches and lay them in and upon said custard cream.

Dot each lid with a spoonful of cream to cap it off and serve.