Crumble and fall

The glut of autumn fruit is a good chance to audition contenders for the Christmas menu. Start now with a pear crumble and a fig cake, says Tamal Ray

With our mornings now transformed by darkness, grey skies and damp, many of us will fall into a slump, pining for the occasional sunshine of a British summer. But for me, it means one thing: Christmas. The big day might be two months away but for those of us who have cottoned on to the fact that the run-up is the best bit, now is the time to be excited. Christmas cakes are being made, menus debated among family cooks. Our own Christmas dessert list, a work in progress, is already up to nine different items.

It’s the spirit of pre-christmas, along with the abundance of autumn fruit, that has inspired both of these recipes.

A good crumble is one of the first things I learned to make. Simple and almost infinitely customisable, it’s the perfect comforting treat on a cold evening. This particular version, with pears poached in sweetened, spiced wine, would work well with some freezing ice-cream, cool cream or piping-hot custard. Or perhaps all three.

Though they’re not native to our shores, black figs are one of my favourite fruits. Fat, dark and juicy, they caramelise perfectly when roasted with a little honey and spooned over natural yoghurt. They also make a versatile addition to cakes and tarts, bringing refreshing colour and flavour to a simple honey and almond loaf cake.

Poached pear & raspberry crumble

Choose the firmest, most unripe pears that you can find for this crumble. They’ll take longer to poach, which means they’ll absorb plenty of flavour from the wine and spices. Makes 6-8 portions of crumble 6 200ml 200ml firm conference red apple wine juice pears 80g sugar 1 stick cinnamon 2 star anise 4 cloves 150g fresh or frozen raspberries For the crumble 125g unsalted butter (cold) 100g soft brown sugar 100g plain flour ¼ tsp table salt 90g whole rolled oats 50g seeds (pumpkin or sunflower)

Preheat the oven to 180C/350f/gas mark 4. Start by poaching the pears: peel them, remove the tops and tails, and slice in half.

Pour the wine, juice, sugar and spices into a saucepan, with the pears. Cover and bring to a gentle simmer. Leave for as long as possible, ideally 3040 minutes. You’ll know they’re done when you’re able to stick in a fork easily but they still have some firmness.

While the pears poach, prepare the crumble biscuit. Start by cutting the cold butter into cubes, then rub it into the sugar, flour and salt by hand until it resembles bread crumbs. Mix in the oats and seeds so that they are evenly distributed.

Spread the crumble mixture out over a large baking tray, lined with baking parchment. Pop it into the freezer for 10 minutes to firm up, then into the oven for eight minutes until it has baked to a hazel brown. Set aside

‘Crumble is the perfect comforting treat on a cold evening’

to cool and turn the oven down to 160C/320f/gas mark 3.

Once the pears are cooked, remove from the liquid and discard the spices. Turn up the heat until the liquid is substantially reduced in volume and has become thick and syrupy.

Assemble the crumble by placing the pears into a roasting dish about 20cm x 30cm. Scatter over the raspberries and pour over the sauce. Finally, break up the crumble biscuit and scatter over the fruit. Warm for five to 10 minutes in the oven and serve with ice-cream or custard.

Honey, almond and fig cake

We’re at the end of fig season so feel free to use any other fruit you wish. Frozen blackberries, or sharp granny smith apples would work well. Makes 1 loaf cake 220g unsalted butter 2 oranges, zest and juice 150g honey, plus 2tbsp for the glaze 2 large eggs ¼ tsp almond extract 100g plain flour 200g ground almonds ¼ tsp table salt ¼ tsp baking soda 1 fig, finely sliced

Preheat the oven to 160C/320f/gas mark 3. Melt the butter in a saucepan on a medium heat and cook until the water boils off and the fat bubbles up. Remove from the heat and you should see that the butter has turned a hazelnut colour and has a nutty aroma. If it still looks pale yellow, return it to the heat for one or two more minutes. Stir in the juice of one orange, 150g honey and zest of both oranges, followed by the two eggs and almond extract.

Sieve together the flour, ground almonds, salt and baking soda. Stir in the liquids to form a smooth batter. Pour it into a loaf tin lined with greaseproof paper. Finally, arrange the thin slices of fig over the surface of the batter.

Bake in the centre of the oven for 3540 minutes. When ready, it should be a deep golden brown on top – check that a skewer comes out clean.

While the cake is baking, add the juice of the remaining orange to a small saucepan with two tablespoons of honey. Simmer for a few minutes until the mixture has reduced in volume and started to thicken. When the cake is ready, remove from the oven. Brush the top with the glaze.