Individual pear and crumble puddings served in old-fashioned teacups

Pear and chocolate crumbles

Name: Pear and chocolate crumbles
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 1 h 5 min
Yield: Serves 6
Cuisine: British recipes
Ingredients: 250g caster sugar; 1 tbsp lemon juice; 3 strips pared orange zest; 1 vanilla pod, split and seeds scraped; 1 cinnamon stick, broken in half; 3 cloves; 6 ripe but firm pears, peeled but kept whole, with stems intact; For the chocolate custard; 300ml whole milk; 300ml double cream; 3 large free-range egg yolks; 50g caster sugar; 1 tbsp cornflour; 200g good-quality dark chocolate, chopped; 2 tbsp Frangelico liqueur; For the flapjack crumble topping; 30g self-raising flour; 70g rolled porridge oats; 20g caster sugar; 20g light muscovado sugar; 50g chilled butter, cubed; 40g roasted hazelnuts, chopped; 15g flaked almonds; 1 tbsp golden syrup

Portion size: Serves 6
Hands on time 30 minutes, cooking time 35 minutes, plus cooling
Difficulty: easy

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Poached pears and boozy chocolate custard make a lovely pudding combination in this crumble recipe.

Check out more autumnal desserts made with seasonal fruits.

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Ingredients

250g caster sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
3 strips pared orange zest
1 vanilla pod, split and seeds scraped
1 cinnamon stick, broken in half
3 cloves
6 ripe but firm pears, peeled but kept whole, with stems intact

For the chocolate custard

300ml whole milk
300ml double cream
3 large free-range egg yolks
50g caster sugar
1 tbsp cornflour
200g good-quality dark chocolate, chopped
2 tbsp Frangelico liqueur

For the flapjack crumble topping

30g self-raising flour
70g rolled porridge oats
20g caster sugar
20g light muscovado sugar
50g chilled butter, cubed
40g roasted hazelnuts, chopped
15g flaked almonds
1 tbsp golden syrup

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Method

Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan180°C/ gas 6. For the topping, put the flour, oats and sugars in a bowl, add the butter and rub with your fingers to form big crumbs. Stir in the rest of the crumble ingredients, mixing to form big clumps. Spread over a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes until golden. Remove from the oven. It will have melted together, so break into big clumps with a wooden spoon. Leave to cool a little and crisp.
To poach the pears, put the sugar in a large pan, add 1 litre water and place over a medium heat. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. Add the remaining ingredients, then lower in the pears. Bring to a simmer then cook for 15-20 minutes, turning occasionally, until tender. Carefully remove, set aside and keep warm.
For the custard, heat the milk and cream in a pan over a medium heat until just about to boil. Meanwhile, mix the yolks, sugar and cornflour in a bowl and add the chocolate. Pour the milk mixture over the egg mixture and stir until the chocolate melts. Return to a clean pan. Place over a gentle heat, stirring well, until the custard coats the back of a spoon. Stir in the Frangelico, remove from the heat and keep warm.
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Place each pear upright in a cup or bowl (cut a little off the bases if you like). Pour in the warm custard, sprinkle the topping over and serve.