Cranberry, apple and maple pudding cake

Since it's Thanksgiving today, I thought I'd use up the last of the cranberries I had left over from my cranberry and clementine loaf cake-baking at the weekend and make something American-inspired. What better pairing than maple syrup, apple, cinnamon? This was inspired by a recipe which also contained cornmeal, another very American ingredient, and although I had some in the pantry from when I made cornbread, I have to confess none of us were that keen on its slightly grainy texture - so I decided to go for ground almonds instead! The result was a lovely warming dessert, somewhere between a pudding and a cake.

And as it's a time of giving thanks, I just wanted to say a great big THANK YOU! to all of you who've visited and enjoyed reading my blog. Today I hit the 20,000 visitor mark - something I'd never have dreamt would happen when I first started this to record my recipes. It's lovely getting feedback from those of you who have tried baking or just enjoyed looking at the cakes I've invented. Come back again soon!

Ingredients

5 oz fresh cranberries

1 apple, peeled, cored and chopped

6 tbsp maple syrup

4 tbsp water

1 egg

4 fl. oz milk

4 oz butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla extract

4 oz self-raising flour

2 oz ground almonds

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking powder

Pinch of salt

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C and butter a pie dish.
2. Place the cranberries, apple, maple syrup and water in a saucepan, bring to a simmer and cook for 3 minutes.
3. Transfer about half a cup of the fruit and a little of the juice to a small bowl and set aside.
4. Pour the remaining fruit and juice into the pie dish and place in the oven.
5. In a large mixing bowl, add the egg, milk, butter and vanilla and whisk lightly.
6. Sift in the flour, almonds, cinnamon, baking powder and salt and whisk until just combined.
7. Remove the pie dish from the oven and pour the batter over the fruit.
8. Spoon the reserved fruit and juice on top.
9. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until risen, golden brown and springy to touch.
10. Allow to cool for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Adapted from Sinfully Easy Delicious Desserts by Alice Medrich (I replaced the cornflour with ground almonds, replaced some of the cranberries with apple and added cinnamon)