– salty, sweet, meaty, and the ultimate snack for soaking up whatever alcohol you might be drinking. I marinate the prunes first in a little tea, which plumps them and balances their sweetness with a touch of bitterness. (I’d happily spoon the voluptuous fruit and its liquid onto yogurt.) The aroma of the roasting fruit and bacon will fill your house, so it’s particularly nice to cook these just before friends arrive. You’ll use only a small portion of the pears prepared here, but there are so many other ways to eat them. My two favourites are tossing the sweet-tart slices with toasted walnuts in a salad of hearty lettuces or serving them alongside a nice hunk of blue cheese.
makes 10
FOR THE PEARS
450ml dry white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc
225ml white wine vinegar
200g caster sugar
1 tablespoon sliced skin-on fresh ginger
10 black peppercorns
4 whole allspice berries
About 4 dried pequin chillies or pinches of red pepper flakes
1 large cinnamon stick
3 large perfectly ripe Bartlett pears
FOR THE PRUNES
1 English Breakfast tea bag, preferably PG Tips
3 tablespoons Armagnac or Cognac
10 large pitted prunes
10 thin slices bacon
Maldon or another flaky sea salt
2 or 3 dried pequin chillies or pinches of red pepper flakes
For the pears: Combine the first eight ingredients in a pot just big enough for the pears to be submerged in the liquid in a snug fit. One at a time, peel the pears and halve them lengthwise. Use a small spoon to scoop out the tough core from each pear half, then trim off the hard bit at the base of each one. As you finish prepping each one, add it to the liquid so it doesn’t brown.
Bring the liquid to the boil over medium-high heat, then turn down the heat so it simmers gently (don’t rush it, or the pears will disintegrate). Cook just until the pears are tender but not very soft or mushy, 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the firmness of the pears.
Turn off the heat and let the pears cool in the liquid. They’ll continue to cook a bit as they cool. Once cool, they’ll still have a touch of snap to them, a soft crunch. They’ll keep happily in their liquid in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
For the prunes: Bring 225ml water to the boil in a small pan. Add the tea bag and let steep for 5 minutes, off the heat. Discard the tea bag and let the tea cool completely.
Combine the tea, Armagnac, and prunes in a small bowl. The prunes should be completely submerged in the liquid; if they’re not, use a different container. Cover the bowl with clingfilm and pop it into the fridge. Let the prunes soak just until they’re plump and soft, overnight or longer if necessary.
When the prunes are ready, remove them from the liquid. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the liquid.
Cut half of one of the spiced pears into 10 oblique pieces that will fit inside the prunes but are not so small that the prune envelops it completely. You want a couple of centimetres or so of the pear to peek out at one end of the prune. Stuff each prune with a pear piece. You might have to pop your little finger into the prune first.
Lay a slice of bacon on a cutting board, put a prune at one end, and roll up so the prune is wrapped in the bacon. If you feel there’s too much bacon, cut a little off – you want a nice balance between bacon and prune. Repeat with the remaining prunes and bacon. Covered with clingfilm, they keep overnight.
Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the grill (if you don’t have a grill, heat the oven as high as it will go).
Arrange the prunes seam side down in a shallow baking pan, leaving some room between them. Add 3 tablespoons of the pear liquid to the pan, along with the reserved prune liquor, then add a generous pinch of salt and crumble in the chillies. Baste, then cook the prunes under the grill or in the oven, basting them with the liquid every few minutes or so, until the bacon is golden and slightly crispy, about 15 minutes. Transfer the prunes to a plate or tray and drizzle with some of the liquid. If your bacon is on the sweet side, sprinkle on salt to taste. Let cool slightly before you dig in.
MARINATED SARDINES
The sardine might be my favourite fish, and as much as I love them grilled whole, this is also a fantastic way to eat them. Marinating the fillets in a simple mixture of little more than lemon juice and olive oil firms them up and lends them a brightness that doesn’t interfere with their oceanic quality. The result is refreshing and cleanly flavoured. The sardines are a treat laid over a salad of tomatoes or on top of some sliced cucumber tossed with crème fraîche and dill, though I often just eat them on olive-oil–lashed toast, perhaps with a little rocket and crumbled chilli.
serves 4
5 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
A generous pinch of finely grated lemon zest
3 dried pequin chillies, crumbled, or pinches of red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon sea salt
8 large fresh sardines (about 450g), scaled, gutted, and filleted (see Buying and Filleting Sardines, here)
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
A small handful of small, delicate flat-leaf parsley sprigs
Combine the lemon juice, zest, chillies, and salt in a medium dish that’s at least 2.5cm deep and just large enough to fit the sardines in one layer. Gently shake the dish and swirl the liquid to dissolve the salt. Gently lay the sardine fillets skin side up in the mixture. You don’t want to stir them, because agitating them too much will release their oil and you’ll get a slightly fishier flavour.
Drizzle the olive oil over the top. Give the dish a gentle shake to make sure the sardines have settled in the liquid and look comfortable. They won’t quite be submerged.
Cover the dish with clingfilm and pop it into the fridge overnight. The lemon will cook the sardines, firming them up a bit and infusing them with its flavour. (You can leave them to marinate for up to 2 days. They’ll be quite firm but still tasty.) Before serving, take them out of the fridge for a few minutes. I like to eat them when they still have a slight chill to them. Roughly chop the parsley and sprinkle it on the sardines. However you serve them, make sure to top them with a drizzle of the pan liquor.
BUYING AND FILLETING SARDINES
Choose fresh sardines that have firm flesh, clear eyes, and shiny skin. Their scales should be tight against their bodies, not flaking off. Ask your fishmonger to fillet
