You know that we love walnut oil. It's one of those small cupboard indulgences that lifts up nearly every dish it touches. So when we came across a recipe for roasted grapes with walnut oil - well! We had to try it.

There were actually two recipes for roasted grapes that we had in our bookmarks. We took these Epicurious two recipes and combined them into one modified recipe, with one or two additions of our own. The first recipe was our direct inspiration; we had it bookmarked for months. Then we tried it, loved it, and have been tinkering with it ever since.

• Ice Cream with Roasted Grapes and Walnut Oil
• Sweet Ricotta Pudding with Roasted Grapes

Our modified version has a touch of cinnamon and an addition of real walnuts - toasted beforehand. This pumps the dish up into a dessert you can eat on its own, just sweet enough to be satisfying. But it's so very good over plain yogurt, with all that sweet syrup. Try for breakfast, dessert, or a snack.

It's incredibly quick to put in the oven; you can even do it while guests are finishing dinner. Nearly-instant-dessert. It turns out all purple and runny with sweet syrup, too. So what if the popped grapes look slightly like brains; it's a great Halloween dessert, we think!

Grapes Roasted with Walnut Oil
Makes about 4 cups

1 1/2 pounds red seedless grapes
4 teaspoons walnut oil
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (preferably fresh-ground)
Pinch of kosher salt
1/2 cup roasted walnuts

Heat the oven to broil. Wash and stem the grapes. Pat dry and put in a 9x13 baking pan. Toss the grapes with the walnut oil, brown sugar, butter, cinnamon and salt.

Broil for 7-9 minutes, or until the grapes start popping open. Remove from the oven and stir in the roasted walnuts. Let cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.

Serve with whipped cream, a dollop of mascarpone, some soft goat cheese, Greek yogurt, or vanilla ice cream.

(Images: Faith Durand)