A festive version of the French classic of Poached Prunes in Red Wine. Add warming mulled wine spices to make a healthy dessert during the holiday season.
1bottle (75cl/ 3 cups)Red wine(ideally from the Loire, e.g. Chinon)
1Cinnamon stick
3Cloves
2star anise (badiane)
75g (2.5oz/ ⅓ cup)Sugar
Instructions
First wash the orange and wipe dry using kitchen paper. Using a zester or a sharp knife, remove the zest in long strips.
In a large bowl, place the prunes, wine and spices. Cover and leave the prunes to soak for 4 hours or overnight.
Using a sieve, drain off the prunes and pour the wine into a saucepan with the spices, zest and add the sugar and squeezed orange juice. On a high heat, stir to dissolve the sugar and bring to the boil. Turn down the heat, add the prunes, cover and poach gently for 10 minutes.
Drain the prunes into a large bowl (that has a cover) and set aside. Boil the mulled wine with the spices and zest for a couple of minutes until it looks like a syrup. Remove the zest and spices then pour over the prunes.
Cool then refrigerate the prunes covered for at least 2 hours (or overnight).
Notes
Storage: mulled wine prunes can keep in the fridge (covered) for up to 5 days.Serve with almond tuiles, financier cakes or macarons.Poaching Tip: I've already tried to cut corners for you so don't skip a step of leaving them to poach. The flavours are not nearly the same! Be patient and leave them to soak and chill before serving. It's worth the wait.