Bottled mulled fruit

This recipe is a piece of cake. Almost as important as the filling is the package, so look for a nice jar to fill, or get hold of kilner jars, which always look professional for some reason.

Make syrup by adding a bottle of red wine with 75og of light brown sugar, simmering it for two or three minutes in a shallow steel or non-stick pan for preference. Add half a whole nutmeg, a couple of sticks of cinnamon and a clove.

Peel and quarter about one kilo of pears and apples – ‘Cornice’ pears and Cox’s are great for this. Core the fruit and poach each type separately until the fruit is just cooked – a gentle heat and a lid works well. The fruit will soften and collapse a little-but you should not allow the apples to turn to a pulp. Lift the fruit out and strain, reserving the juices to add back to the pan.

Divide the fruit between whatever jars you have to hand – but do not pack too tightly. Boil the syrup to reduce by half and add some of this to the jars so that the syrup comes up to about one third of the volume of the fruit Top up with brandy and store in a cool, dark place for a month or so before eating with some clotted cream and shortbread -or make a wonderful trifle with the bottled fruit.

A lovely addition to the Christmas table is something not too sweet, and some home-made candied fruits are a special treat, and something which when made at home is going to be so much better than anything you can buy. A favorite of mine is candied grapefruit peel, which makes good use of the thick, luscious peel that I otherwise am at a loss for something to do with. You can try oranges too, but use those with the thickest peel possible, as it will give the best results.