Dan Lepard's baked pineapple with almonds recipe

Pineapple baked in a vanilla syrup can be served hot with ice-cream, at room temperature with sorbet or just as it is. To respect the fruit's ­delicacy, I've added a soft almond pudding crust that ­makes it feel more filling when the weather is cold, or when you're just in need of a little extra comfort. 1 large, ripe pineapple 125g caster sugar (more if needed) ½ lemon (or lime), juiced 75ml brandy (or orange juice) 1 split vanilla pod 75g butter, softened 1 large egg 75g ground almonds 25g plain flour Flaked almonds Trim the skin from the pineapple, cut into quarters, remove and discard the core, and cut into 1cm-thick pieces. Put the fruit in a baking dish big enough that the pieces half fill it, sprinkle on 50g of sugar, the lemon juice, 50ml of brandy and 75ml of water, and submerse the vanilla pod in the ­liquid. Cover with foil and bake at 180C (160C fan-assisted)/350F/gas mark 4 until hot and tender. Meanwhile, make the frangipane crust: beat the butter and remaining sugar until smooth, then beat in the egg, ground almonds, flour and the rest of the brandy. Just before serving, spoon this over the fruit, sprinkle with flaked almonds, raise the oven to 200C (180C fan-assisted)/390F/gas mark 6 and bake until brown on top. danlepard.com/guardian