Fruit Compote

My husband is in charge of Sunday night dinners, and he always comes up with something amazing! Breakfast is a familiar theme, and this week he made pumpkin waffles (from a delicious Trader Joe's mix) topped with a fruit compote and a touch of whipped cream. YUM. YUM. YUM. Here's his fruit compote, based largely on one from myrecipes.com.

Fruit Compote

• 2-3 apples, chopped (and cored)
• 1 can pear halves or slices in light syrup, drained and chopped
• 1/2-1 cup frozen berries, any combo*
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3/4 t. cinnamon**
• generous pinch ground cloves**
• generous pinch ground nutmeg**
• 1/2 t. vanilla
• 2-3 T. vanilla*

*depending on tartness of berries (and we think cranberries would also be good), you may want to use less lemon juice or omit altogether

**this makes a fairly spicy mix; if you have sensitive palates in the house, you may want to use less

1. Stir together all ingredients except pears and vanilla in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for a few minutes (3-4). Add pears and continue to simmer until desired tenderness. Berries will nearly disintegrate and turn the sauce purple!
2. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. May be served hot or cold. Excellent warm over waffles!

~Makes enough for 6 servings of waffles ☺.