Winter Warmers: Mincemeat and pear crumble pots

I bloody love Sainsbury's Magazine.I love the photography, the food styling, the glossiness- and of course, the recipes. My favourite time of year to buy it is always around Christmas and New Year, when everything seems a little glossier, a little more decadent and a little bit glitzy.

I've also really been craving mincemeat this year; as rich, sticky and boozy as possible! It would be a tragedy to condemn it to a life of mince pies alone, so if you aren't going to give a mincemeat tart a go, at least try out this little recipe- perfect for over the Christmas period.

I'm a sucker for anything that comes in individual pots; I have a collection of beautiful little lidded Le Crouset style mini casserole pots brought home from France, and it's so lovely to be able to provide little individual desserts in such beautiful kitchenware.

Combining it with pear not only sound delicious, but so warming and seasonal I had to post it as soon as possible...


Mincemeat and Pear Crumble Pots

3 ripe pears in chunks
125g mincemeat
Juice of 1/2 lemon
40g plain flour
40g Brazil nuts, chopped
25g cold butter, cubed
40g dark sugar
25g rolled oats

Preheat the oven to 180 fan. Mix together the chopped pear, mincemeat and lemon juice and divide between 4 ramekins on a baking tray.
In a food processor, blend the flour, nuts, butter and sugar until just combined and stir in the oats. Sprinkle evenly over the pear mixture. Bake for 25 minutes until the crumbs are golden and bubbling.

Simple as that!

xxx

Porridge of the Week # 23

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Porridge of the Week #23
Blueberry Frangipane

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Category: Flavour

Start by poaching a skinned and chopped pear in a little bit of water and sugar. When it is soft, break it down a bit with the back of a fork. Leave aside and soak the porridge in milk and add a drop of almond essence. As it heats through, add a tablespoon of ground almond and a handful of dried blueberries. Stir through. When the porridge is warm and at the desired consistency, tip in the pear, saving a little back for garnish.
Spoon into a bowl and top with a spoonful of pear and a sprinkling of blueberries.

I really enjoy making porridges based on puddings. My equally geeky friend and I like to create pudding themed porridges and muffins when we are bored (did I really admit to that..?) and this is the fruit of one of these sessions. The sharpness of the blueberries is really complimentary against the sweetness of the pear.

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Porridge of the Week #16

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Porridge of the Week #16

Alyona's Pear, chocolate and Bailey's

Category: Evening

Start by chopping a pear or two into chunks and add just enough water to cover. Tip in a spoonful of sugar and cinammon. Bring to the boil, then simmer. Leave to simmer until the pear breaks down when pressed with a spoon and the sugar water begins to thicken. When ready, cover with oats, and add milk and a drop of vanilla essence. Stir together as it warms through. When it reaches temperature, add some broken chunks of dark chocolate. Not too much, or it will obscure all other flavours- three should suffice. Add them one at a time and you can always add more if necassary. Stir enough for the chocolate to begin the melt and streak into the oats.
Spoon into a bowl and top with some dark chocolate shavings and then drizzle with a shot of Bailey's liquer.

I made this porridge the other day for Alyona- I dedicate it to her. I knew she follows my P.O.T.W feature and so I wanted to make sure it was something special. In the process I accidently created something very special indeed... As you can tell, this is much more of an evening porridge than a day one- but it's really impressive to roll out if you have guests. It's a great indulgent pudding if you want a warm, rich winter equivalent to icecream, if you're sat in with a film.
For a more dinner party version, try chilling the porridge mix so it begins to set slightly. Using an icecream scoop, scoop out one ball per person, arrange on a plate, and like before, top with a few chocolate shavings and a drizzle of Bailey's. It's weird. But it's kinda cool.

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Porridge of the Week #5

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Porridge of the Week #5

Yoghurt, grated apple and muesli
Yoghurt, pear, sultana, and muesli

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Category: Flavoured
You have two options this week! Because we tested two varieties this morning, and they were both great, and only a slight variation of each other.
Soak the porridge in milk or apple juice. Stir in a few tablespoons of crunchy muesli (We used Jordan's raisin and nuts crunchy oats) and warm through. Grate in half the apple and heat through. When the porridge is ready to serve, spoon on the yoghurt (plain or flavoured, according to personal taste) and top with the remaining half of the apple.
For the pear version, stew some pear in a little water and cinammon. Serve with sultanas, yoghurt and cereal.

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