Spiced Autumn Dessert w Amaretto Cream

Autumn is my favourite season and I love to make this when beautiful organic pears, figs and apples are in season.

I love anything with almonds and a dash of Amaretto makes most things taste better. I am a little obsessed with Italian food and this recipe was inspired by POLPO probably one of my most used recipe books in my kitchen. Leftover fruit would be so good for breakfast the next day chopped up and swirled through with some granola and yogurt.

You just need and autumn day, some hungry friends, chilled dessert wine and spoons : )

• 500ml white wine
• 250g castor sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 star anise
• 3 firm pears, peeled, cored
• 3 apples, peeled, cored
• 4 ripe figs (opt) halved
• lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon
• 1tspn finely grated ginger
• thumbnail ginger, sliced
• 100g unsalted butter
• 100g brown sugar (or any type)
• 1/2 packet ginger biscuits crushed (or what you can find)

Amaretto Cream

• 200g cream
• 1tbspn icing sugar
• 2tbpsn amaretto

1. Preheat oven to 160c. Bring 1 litre of water, the wine, sugar, sliced ginger and cinnamon to the boil in a med saucepan. Leave it to simmer for about 5min. Cut the pears in quarters and add to the pot and simmer, covered on a very low heat for about 20min or until the pears are soft but still holding their shape. Remove from the heat and allow to cool in the syrup.
2. In a wide pan (ideally one that can go in the oven), melt the butter with the brown sugar, cut the apples into quarters. When the butter starts to bubble, add the apple pieces, turn the temperature down to a low heat and let the apples bubble away for 5minutes or until starting to soften. Remove from the heat.
3. Same pan (or oven proof dish) spoon in the pears with some syrup, with the apples and add the figs. Bake for about 10min. While baking, whip the cream & icing sugar to a very soft peak and stir through the grated ginger & Amaretto.
4. TO SERVE: Place the whole dish in the middle of the table, spoon over some of the cream and sprinkle with the crushed biscuits