Poached pears

A low fat, grown up, Christmassy and rather divine dessert.

6 plump pears
24 prunes, the soft and ready to eat dried type are best
1 bottle red wine
1 jar (340g) of redcurrant jelly
1 lemon
2" cinnamon stick
6 black peppercorns
4 cloves

Put the spices in a pan. Use the zest of 1/2 the lemon cut into strips - a canal knife is the easiest way. Empty in the redcurrant jelly, pour in the wine, add the prunes. Bring to a simmer whilst you prepare the pears.

Peel the pears, leaving the stem on; a potato peeler works fine. To core, use an apple corer in the base, but don't cut through to the top; remove the core with a twist. Put the pears into the wine mixture as you do them to avoid them going brown - if you are a very slow worker, you might be better rubbing them with the lemon as you peel them to prevent browning, then adding them all at once so that they are all cooked the same.

Simmer, covered, for 15 minutes or longer if the pears are hard. Turn the pears occasionally to ensure an even colour. They will stay warm in the liquid for quite a while, improving flavour, so you can prepare them early.

Serve each person one warm pear, a few prunes, and a dribble of the warm sauce, with vanilla ice cream.

DON'T waste the cooking liquid, which makes a decadent form of mulled wine

The first time I ever had this, the person who was cooking it served it with semolina (or it could have been ground rice). Sounds wierd but it was absolutely beautiful.