Baked Pineapple with Almonds

Look at that blue sky. When you see a clear sky like that, how hot do you think it is out there? 15’C? 20’C? Wrong. Out there, it was a bone-chilling 4’C. Yup – deceiving weather. The time between winter and spring is often a funny one to cook in. Some days its freezing cold and you want December/January style food – comfort food at its best. Other days its warm and sunny and you want June/July food – salads and fresh fruit/flavours. That is precisely why Dan Lepard created this pineapple dish – perfect for the switch between seasons. Even, if like the sky photo above, its a sunny day but freezing, this pudding will hit the spot. The tropical juicy pineapple feels right for the sunshine, but the sponge on top adds the comfort needed to block out the cold. Genius idea. Shamefully before this pudding I had not cooked using fresh pineapple before and, unsurprisingly, it was so much more full of flavour than the tinned stuff. Definitely a fruit I will be returning too – perhaps with this pudding minus the sponge plus a big pile of yoghurt for breakfast. I varied the recipe a little because I had no brandy, and thought that the orange flavours of Cointreau would partner the pineapple nicely. Happily, it did and the pudding was as delish as hoped. Like Dan Lepard says, it is definitely best on day one straight after it comes after the oven – the next day it tends to go a little stodgy as the sponge soaks up those pineappley juices. So whether its hot, cold or impossible to tell from your computer screen, head over here to grab the recipe and get cooking. :)