麻豆社

Mulled Pears

500ml pear cider
150g white sugar (about half a mug full)
300ml water (about 1 mug full)
1 large orange
4 star anise
2 cinnamon sticks
6 cloves
1 vanilla pod
8 pears
Handful jumbo sultanas

1. Preheat your oven to 150C. Combine your pear cider, sugar and water in a small saucepan and heat gently.

2. Using a veg peeler remove the skin from the orange making sure you leave any white pith behind. Add about half of the peel to the saucepan along with all the juice. Add 2 star anise, 2 cloves, cinnamon sticks and the split vanilla pod and continue to heat until it boils then let it bubble away for a few minutes until all the sugar is dissolved and it has started to become syrupy. Stir and remove from the heat.

3. Peel and quarter your pears. If you are using a really big jar or small pears then you can leave them whole but I find that you can fit more in if you quarter them. Divide the pears between your sterilised jars adding the sultanas, remaining star anise, cloves and orange peel then pour over your syrup making sure everything is submerged.

4. Pop a lid on the jars very loosely and place in the oven for an hour. Remove from the oven, tighten the lids and leave for at least a week before eating. You can keep them unopened for a couple of months but then once opened keep in the fridge and eat within a week.

Toffee Rum

70cl Golden Rum
400g hard toffees

Simply smash up your toffees and pop them in a big jar, seal with the lid and shake. After a few days the toffees will have all dissolved into a wonderful creamy rum then decant into bottles (or back into the original rum bottle). Best kept in the fridge.

Honeyed Nuts

Walnut halves or whole hazelnuts
Runny honey

Simply fill a sterilised jar 3/4 full with the nuts then cover with honey, seal and leave for at least 2 weeks. For a boozy version soak the nuts in brandy for 2 days before draining and covering in honey.

(Photo: Hazel Paterson)

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