Pear & berry cobbler

A cobbler is a scrumptious variation on a pie or crumble. Traditionally the ‘cobble' topping is made from a scone dough but this one contains buttermilk and has a lovely light texture and crusty surface.

Preparation: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves: 6

What you need:

6 ripe pears, about 1kg, peeled, cored and diced
250g frozen autumn or summer berries
75g golden caster sugar

For the cobbles:

100g plain flour
125g wholemeal flour
50g rolled or porridge oats, plus 1 tbsp for sprinkling
25g golden caster sugar
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
50g butter, melted
240ml buttermilk

What you do:

Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4. Toss together the pears, berries and sugar in a large saucepan. Bring to the boil and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes. Spoon into an ovenproof dish.
Stir together the dry ingredients. Make a well in the centre and add the butter and buttermilk then mix together to make a sticky dough.
Drop large spoonfuls of the dough onto the fruit, scatter over the reserved oats then bake for 30 - 35 minutes until the crust is golden brown and the fruit is tender. Serve warm with a scoopful of vanilla ice cream.

Handy tip:

- Buttermilk give the cobbles a lovely flavour and texture but if you have difficulty finding it, mix together a 150g carton of low fat yogurt and 90ml of milk for a good subsitute.
- Bramley apples are a cooking apple and they have a wonderful tart flavour and pulp down brilliantly which makes them the ideal choice for apple sauces and purees. Although they are seasonal they can usually be found most of the year and can be used in this recipe instead of the pears - for 1kg you will need to use 150g sugar.