Now it is summer in Europe which means it is the time of peaches. One of the best ways to use peaches is the creation of a Coupe Melba.
The Ingredients You Need
THE ICE CREAM
- 1 ½ cups water
- 1 ¾ cups sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 4 peaches
- 1 pint vanilla ice cream
THE RASPERRY SAUCE
- 1 ½ cups fresh raspberries
- 2 tbsp confectioner’s sugar
- ½ tbsp lemon juice
INSTRUCTIONS
The above are the ingredients of the original recipe. Click here for the instructions
THE HISTORY OF A DESSERT
The Coupe Melba has been invented by Paul Escoffier in the Savoy Hotel in London in the 1890s. The name is of course no coincidence: the dessert was created in honour of the famous singer Nellie Melba and it contains two of her favourite summer fruits: peach and raspberry.
WHO WAS NELLIE MELBA?
Dame Nellie Melba was born Helen Porter Mitchel in Melbourne in 1861. From her very early school career it seemed to be clear that her talents were singing, piano and arts. She did not acquire her stage name by marriage but by using parts of the name of her city of birth.
Nellie Melba was famous for her brilliant voice which covered almost three octaves and had a silvery timbre. And unlike other stars her biographers convey that she never suffered from false modesty or modesty at all.
Her ego was quite intact and apparently she saw herself equal to all the crowned heads. Rumour has it that she considered her staff, that stood quivering when she gave orders, and a great deal of other people beneath her.
But what do we know? Maybe she was simply self-reliant; a quality most women of her time probably did not have.
What we do know is that she was blessed with a wonderful voice and was the Prima Donna in Covent Garden and the Met where she had 238 performances within 17 years.
For a more detailed biography please click here.
