Ingredients

3 egg whites

3 tablespoons sugar

3 medium peaches, fresh or canned, halved, pitted and peeled

3 Armaretti cookies, crumbled

2 tablespoons rum or cassis

3/4 cup peach juice or the syrup from the canned peaches

1 tablespoon butter

Pesche Meringate

Serves 6

Preheat the oven to 450 F.

Place the egg whites in a metal bowl and beat with an electric mixer until frothy. Slowly beat in the sugar, until it becomes a glossy, white and thick meringue.

Place the peach halves in a small ovenproof baking dish and sprinkle with the crumbled cookies and rum. Put a spoonful of the meringue on each peach half. Pour the juice or syrup in the bottom of the dish and bake until the meringue just starts to brown, about 5 minutes.

Transfer the peach halves to small dessert bowls. Add the butter to the cokking liquid in the baking dish, mix well and divide the sauce among the dessert bowls.