Preheat the oven to 200°C, fan 180°C, gas 6. Peel, halve and core the pears; core them using a melon baller or a small sharp knife. Place them in a single layer in a roasting tin or dish.

Using a peeler, remove the skin from the lemon in strips, scatter over the pears. Juice the lemon and drizzle over the pears along with the maple syrup and 200ml of cold water.

Tuck the bay leaves, star anise and cinnamon stick among the pear halves and bake for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes, scatter the blackberries over the pear halves and return to the oven for 10 minutes.

Take the pear and blackberry mixture out of the oven and turn them in the juices from the blackberries so they take on a pretty pink tinge. Leave to cool.