Spiced Poached Fruit with Brown Sugar Mascarpone & Biscotti

‘The recipe for this wonderful, slightly unusual combination of tastes has been passed round almost every household in our valley. I ate it at Polly’s house and begged her for the recipe. She got it from her neighbour Louise who got it from another mutual friend. And I’ve passed it on to countless people. So now we all serve it to each other, but somehow we never seem to tire of it.’ – Kate Humble, author of Home Cooked

Spiced Fruit with Brown Sugar Mascarpone

375ml (13fl oz) white dessert wine

1 cinnamon stick

1 star anise

1 red chilli, halved lengthways

150ml (1/4 pint) water

1 tablespoon caster sugar

3 pears, peeled, quartered and cored

3 clementines, peeled and halved

3 figs, cut into quarters

50g (1 3/4oz) pomegranate seeds

For the Brown Sugar Mascarpone

100g (3 1/2oz) mascarpone

1 1/2 tablespoons dark muscovado sugar

100ml (3 1/2fl oz) double cream

Serves 6

In a bowl, mix the mascarpone and the sugar together, then pour in the cream and stir gently until you have a smooth, coffee-coloured mixture. Cover and chill in the fridge until needed.

Pour the wine into a large, heavy-based saucepan. Add the cinnamon, star anise, the chilli halves and the water. Bring to the boil then remove from the heat and let sit for 15 minutes for the flavours to infuse.

When it’s had its infusion time, put the pan back on the hob and bring it back to the boil, then turn down to a gentle simmer. Add the sugar, the pears and the clementines. If there is not enough liquid to completely cover the fruit, top up with water. Simmer until the pears are almost tender – about 10 minutes – then remove from the heat.

Add the figs and the pomegranate seeds and let it sit, covered, for 5 minutes. Serve warm, passing around the bowl of brown sugar mascarpone and a plate of biscotti.

Biscotti

I confess that more often than not I will just buy ready-made biscotti, but my friend Sarah gave me this recipe for the ones she makes. Sarah is a photographer and was commissioned to take photographs of a new, swanky hotel in California. Where she also had to stay, poor love. The biscotti that were served alongside tiny, perfect cups of espresso were, she said, sublime. Despite her not inconsiderable charms, the chef was rather reluctant to hand over his secrets so Sarah came up with her own version. They certainly taste five star to me.

100g (3.oz) skin-on almonds,

sliced

325g (11.oz) plain flour, plus

extra for dusting

200g (7oz) caster sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

. teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

zest of 1 unwaxed lemon

zest of 1 unwaxed orange

85g (3oz) dried blueberries

icing sugar, for dusting

Makes 24

Preheat your oven to 200ÅãC (425F), Gas Mark 7. Toast the almonds in a dry pan so they take on a little colour, then set aside. Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl. Beat the eggs and pour into the flour mixture along with the lemon and orange zest.

Stir with a wooden spoon then knead with your hands until you have a soft dough. Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, then knead in the toasted almonds and blueberries.

Divide the mixture in half, then shape each half into a log, about 5cm (2in) in diameter. Put the logs of dough on a baking tray lined with baking paper, giving them a bit of room to spread – which they will. Dust them with icing sugar and put in the oven to bake for 25 minutes until pale gold. Test with a skewer to make sure they are cooked through and remove from the oven. Turn the oven down to 150C (300F), Gas Mark 2, and let the logs cool a little.

Once the logs are cool enough to handle, cut them into approximately 2-cm (1/2-in) slices and lay them flat on the lined baking tray. Bake for 15 minutes, turn them over and bake the other side for 15 minutes too. If they haven’t quite firmed up, bake for a further 5 minutes on each side. Leave to cool. If you are not eating them straight away, they will keep in an airtight tin for 2–3 weeks.

This is an extract from Home Cooked by Kate Humble