Cherries Baked with Bay and Chocolate Cream

Cherries Baked with Bay and Chocolate Cream

Serves 6

750 g fresh cherries

2 fresh bay leaves

50 g dark brown sugar

75 g good quality dark chocolate (at least 70 percent cocoa solids)

125 g mascarpone

100 g crème fraiche

Greek Yoghurt to serve

 Preheat oven 200 C/400 F/Gas 6

Place the cherries in a large baking dish, rip the bay leaves in two and add to the dish. Sprinkle with the sugar, cover and place in the oven for about 25-30 minutes or until the cherries are tender.

To make the chocolate cream, bring a small pan of water to a boil, reduce heat to barely simmering. Finely chop the chocolate and place in a small heatproof bowl and set over the water. Remove pan from heat and stir until melted

Beat the mascarpone in a bowl with the crème fraiche, then beat in the melted chocolate.

Serve the cherries with a spoonful of chocolate cream and yoghurt with a crispy biscuit like Tortas de Aceite. (We also had another type of Tortas on Sat which had the addition of sugar crystals and chopped almonds.) They are stupidly expensive over here but they are worth it. Waitrose sell them and I bought mine at La Bouche on Broadway market.