Hot puddings have always been a proper British thing. In France you have tarts and pastries. In Italy it’s always a nice crème brûlée or panna cotta, a creamy dessert with a strong espresso. Well we have hot puds. With tea. Not necessarily pretty or complex, but damn good all the same. This sponge is warming and homey with the cinnamon, fruity and summery with the pear and sweet and moist with the honey. It’s a good’un.

Ingredients

• 250g butter
• 250g golden caster sugar
• 250g self raising flour
• 5 eggs
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 pears, peeled and sliced into quarters
• honey, to drizzle over
• demerera sugar to sprinkle over

First of all, preheat your oven to 170C for a fan oven and 180C for a gas. In a mixing bowl, beat together your butter and sugar until it’s pale and fluffy. Then slowly add in your eggs one by one; if it looks like the mix will curdle before adding them all, throw in your flour and cinnamon, then your remaining eggs. If it doesn’t curdle, first of all congratulations, then add in your flour and cinnamon last. Scoop it all into a baking tin, arrange your pear slices in whatever fashion you wish, drizzle over as much honey as you desire and finish with a final flourish of the demerera sugar. This will give you one hell of a sexy, crunchy top. Bake it in the oven for about 30-35 minutes, or until it springs back when you prod it. When it’s good to go, it’s only right to have it with a good spoonful of vanilla ice cream. Eat up, chaps!