Autumn fruit: plums

Use an old-fashioned deep, oval pie dish, one with a lip around the edge, about 1.5-litre capacity.

Serves 4
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 30-35 minutes

Ingredients
750g ripe plums
75g golden caster sugar
Half tsp ground cinnamon
225g ready-rolled store bought shortcrust pastry
milk and sugar for glazing

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. Cut the plums in half from top to bottom and remove the stones using a small paring knife. Pile the plums snugly in the pie dish, cut sides down and sprinkle over the sugar and cinnamon.

2. Unroll the pastry and place the dish gently on top, then cut out an oval shape slightly larger than the rim of the dish. Wet the rim with a little water and lay the pastry on top, pressing gently to seal, trimming any excess pastry.

3. You can cut out shapes with any extra pastry, or just leave plain. Brush the top with the milk and sprinkle over a little sugar. This gives the pastry a nice crispy glaze. Make a couple of slits in the top to allow steam to escape, place the dish on a baking sheet and bake for 30-35 minutes or until the pastry is golden.

Serve warm with custard or lightly whipped cream.