Pear & ginger butterscotch cobbler

SERVES 6 PREP + COOK TIME 1 HOUR 25 MINUTES

1 cup (160g) brown sugar

100g butter, diced

2⁄3 cup (160g) sour cream

2 tablespoons golden syrup

2 tablespoons whisky

2 tablespoons finely grated fresh ginger 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste juice of ½ lemon

1½ tablespoons plain flour

1.2 kg ripe pears, peeled, cored and thinly sliced vanilla ice-cream, to serve

BUTTERMILK PASTRY TOPPING

2 cups (300g) self-raising flour 2 tablespoons brown sugar, plus extra for sprinkling

1 teaspoon ground ginger

100g chilled butter, chopped

¾ cup (185ml) buttermilk, plus extra for brushing

1 Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fanforced). Combine sugar, butter, sour cream, syrup, whisky, ginger, vanilla and half teaspoon sea salt flakes in a large saucepan and stir over medium-high heat until smooth and combined. Bring to a simmer and cook for 3 minutes until slightly thickened; remove from the heat. Stir in lemon juice then transfer to a large bowl, cool slightly then whisk in flour until smooth and combined. Add pears, stir to coat, transfer to a 2 litre (8-cup) capacity ovenproof dish, place dish on oven tray. 2 BUTTERMILK PASTRY TOPPING Combine the flour, sugar, ginger and a pinch of salt in a medium bowl. Rub in the butter with your fingertips. Stir buttermilk through the flour mixture until a soft dough forms. Turn onto a lightly floured work surface, knead lightly until smooth then roll out to 5mm thick. Cut out rounds with a 6cm-diameter fluted cutter and arrange over the pear mixture, leaving some gaps.

3 Brush the pastry with a little extra buttermilk and sprinkle with a little extra sugar and bake for 35-40 minutes until golden. Stand for 5 minutes and serve with vanilla ice-cream.

Not suitable to freeze or microwave.