Sunny stone fruit recipes, season by season.
A supermarket peach stone is not a promise of orchard abundance, but it is a genuinely good kitchen experiment. Here is how to clean, chill and coax one into life this November — and what to expect from a peach tree raised on a British windowsill.
Stir-Up Sunday falls on 22 November in 2026, and this year the pudding basin is getting a stone-fruit makeover. Dried peaches, apricots and prunes, plus peach liqueur, bring a sunnier note to a very dark December tradition.
Cooking for one shouldn't mean a week of leftovers or a sad half-fruit. This is a small-batch approach to peaches, plums and apricots: buy loose, roast a single fruit, and build a crumble that stops at one ramekin. Designed for dark November evenings when a whole pudding feels like too much.
Late-autumn peaches rarely reward a fruit-bowl display, but they respond beautifully to heat, spice and a squeeze of lemon. A practical Clingstone guide to buying imported stone fruit in November 2026 — and three reliable ways to cook it.
A shrub is an old-fashioned fruit vinegar that turns soda water into something bright and grown-up. Make a peach-and-thyme version and a plum-and-star-anise version, then use them in mocktails, cocktails and fizzy soft drinks all through the grey evenings.
Apricots get less attention than peaches and plums, yet they are one of the most useful stone fruits in a British winter kitchen. Here is how to choose, roast and pair them, plus a simple frangipane tart that earns its place in the cold months.
Stone fruit belongs in the middle of the cheeseboard, not at the end as an apologetic garnish. A build-your-own guide, pairings from sharp Cheddar to soft goat's, a quick peach-and-honey compote, and what to do in November when the fresh season has thinned out.
Cold storage is the quiet saboteur of a good peach. Here's what chilling actually does to stone fruit, why the thumb test beats the sell-by date, and the counter-then-fridge routine that gets supermarket fruit tasting of something.
Peaches in December are not a denial of the season; they are a bright note against all that butter and brandy. Here is the case for tinned and frozen stone fruit on the Christmas table, with spiced peaches, plum-glazed duck and a retro trifle to prove it.
A bowl of stones after a glut is not just waste; it is the raw material for noyaux, the almond-like flavour prized by pastry chefs. Here is how the professionals use it, how home cooks can approach it safely, and which bits should go straight to the compost.
Peaches and nectarines do not have to end up in a crumble. With the right balance of salt, acid and heat, stone fruit can sit happily next to halloumi, sausages and chickpeas. Here is how to tip the balance savoury, plus three recipes to start with.
A freezer is the most useful tool in a stone fruit kitchen, if you pack it properly. This guide covers slicing, syrup-packing, blanching and labelling, plus how to defrost and cook with the results.
Tinned peaches are not a sad substitute for summer. They are summer picked ripe and sealed for the months when the fresh fruit bowl lets you down. Here is how to choose a tin, upgrade it with heat and vanilla, and turn it into three fast puddings that beat most November fruit.
British peaches are no longer just a walled-garden fantasy. From Kent polytunnels to sheltered plots on the Welsh borders, growers are testing varieties and finding ways to ripen stone fruit here. Here is what is actually happening in 2026 - and how to spot the real thing.
The last plums of the season are firmer, sharper and made for the oven. Here are five warming recipes, from spiced poached plums to a savoury sauce for roast pork, plus tips on choosing fruit at the market.
Clingstone or freestone? It is the most useful thing to know about a peach, and the one thing UK supermarket labels rarely tell you. This guide explains the difference, names the varieties you are likely to meet, and suggests what to cook with each.