Hampton Style - October 10, 2008

This fall, come in from the cold and enjoy the
ultimate comfort food: a home-baked harvest dessert
by Fiona Murray

There's a contented luxury that comes with baking at home, and autumn is the perfect time to indulge the pleasure. The season's charms are many-gloriously crisp days, brilliant blue skies and russety leaves-so embrace them with gusto and cozy up to a home-baked harvest dessert. As the weather gets chillier, our activities tend to revolve around comfort eating and indoor entertaining-and there is no warmer welcome than that of a fragrant autumn kitchen. Breathing in the heady aromas of warm cinnamon, cloves, vanilla and brown sugar is enough to make you swoon. Summer who?

The fall harvest is sweet and bountiful. Apples are deliciously crisp, pears are fragrant, plentiful pumpkins are a culinary linchpin (unleashing their true virtues when spiced and baked), and a comforting dessert is the perfect showcase for them. From a syrupy pudding and spicy wine-poached pears with double cream, to a caramelized date sponge or sugar-dusted shortcrust pie. Throw in some chocolate or freshly ground spices and you have a proper reason to come in from the cold. The real comfort food of the season is the one you don't have to go out for, so slip on your apron and bake at home-all the heat you'll need this fall is in the kitchen.

Ingredients
2 ¾ oz. butter
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp water
4 small pears, peeled, halved and cored

Cake
6 oz. butter
1 ½ cups brown sugar
3 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup cocoa powder

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Place the butter, sugar and water in a frying pan over medium heat and stir until the butter is melted. Add the pears, cut-side down, and cook for 2 minutes.

2. Line side and base of a 9-inch round cake tin with non-stick baking paper. Place pears, cut-side down, in pan and pour over pan juices. Set aside.

3. To make the cake, place the butter and brown sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and beat well. Sift the flour, baking powder and cocoa over the mixture and stir through.

4. Spoon mixture over pears in the tin. Bake for 50-60 mins or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Cool in tin for 5 mins. Invert cake onto a serving plate and cut into wedges. Serve with cream.

Ingredients
Topping
¾ cup all-purpose flour
3 ½ oz. unsalted butter, chopped into small pieces
1/3 cup superfine sugar

Cake
6 oz. unsalted butter, softened
1 cup superfine sugar
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 lb 2oz. fresh plums, halved and seeded

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. To make the topping, place the flour, butter and sugar in a bowl and rub with your fingerstips until crumbly (this can be done in a food processor if you prefer).

2. To make the cake, cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in the vanilla extract. Sift the flour and baking powder into the bowl and fold into the mixture. Spread into a 9-inch greased or non-stick springform cake tin. Top with halved plums, cut-side up. Sprinkle with the topping and bake for 1 hour, or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

3. Remove from oven and allow to cool in tin for 10 mins. Delicious served with pouring cream.

Ingredients
Filling
2 lb 4 oz. apricots
½ cup superfine sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 oz. unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2 tsp superfine sugar, extra, for sprinkling

Pastry
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp superfine sugar
6 oz. unsalted butter
5 Tbsp iced water

1. To make the filling, cut apricots in half and remove the stones. Place in a bowl and toss with the sugar and vanilla extract.

2. For pastry, process flour, sugar and butter in a food processor until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Add iced water and process until pastry forms a ball. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

3. Preheat oven to 400F. Roll out pastry to a 13-inch circle. Place in a greased circular or rectangular pie dish, allowing pastry to drape over the side. Place filling on pastry and dot with butter. Fold draping pastry over the top; sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 45 mins, or until pie is golden and the filling is bubbling. Serve with ice cream.

Ingredients
4 Tbsp maple syrup
4 blood plums, thickly sliced

Puddings
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
3 oz. butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
2/3 cup demerara sugar
3/4 cup milk

1. Place 2 teaspoons of maple syrup in the base of each of six 1-cup-capacity ovenproof bowls. Arrange the plum slices on top of the syrup.

2. To make the puddings, process the flour, baking powder, butter, vanilla extract, eggs, sugar and milk in a food processor until smooth. Spoon over the plums. Cover puddings with a circle of non-stick baking paper, then cover with aluminum foil. Secure with string. Place in one or two large saucepans of simmering water. The water should come halfway up sides of bowls. Cover and cook for 1 hour or until the puddings are firm.

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups superfine sugar
2/3 cocoa powder
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
4 eggs, beaten
7 oz. unsalted butter, melted
2 tsp vanilla extract
7 oz. dark chocolate buttons

1. Preheat oven to 315F. Stir sugar, cocoa powder, flour and baking powder together in a bowl. Add eggs, melted butter and vanilla extract. Mix until combined. Mix in chocolate buttons. Pour into a lined 9-inch square tin and bake for 40-45 mins.

2. Allow brownie block to slightly cool then cut into eight pieces. Place on serving plates with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Dust with cocoa powder if you like. Serve with chocolate sauce.

4 1/2 oz. dark chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup cream

Put the chopped chocolate and cream in a heatproof bowl. Place bowl over a saucepan of just simmering water. Whisk occasionally until a thick sauce forms. Cool slightly before serving.

Ingredients
1 quantity sweet shortcrust pastry, or 12 oz. ready-prepared pastry

Filling
2 cups pureed pumpkin (jap or butternut)
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cups cream (single or pouring)
2 eggs
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp finely grated ginger
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Roll out pastry on a lightly floured surface until 1/8-inch thick. Line a deep 9-inch tart ring, or removable-base 9-inch tart tin, with pastry and trim. Prick the base and side of pastry, line with non-stick baking paper and fill with baking weights or rice. Bake pastry case for 5 mins, then remove weights and paper. Cook for a further 5 mins or until golden.

2. To make the filling, process the pumpkin, sugar, cream, eggs, flour, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg in a food processor until just combined. Pour inthe pastry case. Reduce the oven temperature to 350F and bake for 25-30 minutes or until the filling is just set. Serve with thick cream.