If it’s getting towards the end of the week and the fruit bowl is looking a bit sorry for itself, here’s a super hot dessert. When shopping can take too long and some food is hard to get, it makes sense to make the most of everything you have.
This hot fruit salad takes minutes to prepare from easy ingredients: 2 each apples and pears (cored and chopped to bite-size – don’t bother to peel), 2 bananas peeled and chopped, 2 oranges zested and juiced, a handful of raisins, a handful of crystallised ginger chopped.
Put all the ingredients into an ovenproof dish and add a little light brown sugar or honey if desired before stirring everything and covering with cooking foil. Cook at Gas 6 or 200C for 40-60 minutes and serve.
Leftovers re-heat well at a medium microwave setting. A peeled, de-seeded and chopped melon will make the hot fruit salad go further and, if you don’t have any ginger, try a cinnamon stick, star anise or some green cardamom pods for other exotic flavours.
If your other bananas have gone beyond the leopard stage, peel and cut in to chunks before freezing. Whizz to a puree in a food processor with a teaspoonful of honey and, if necessary, re-freeze to firm up before serving.