Summer Pudding

Introduction & method

This unlikely-sounding dessert is an excellent way to use up a late summer glut of berries and soft fruits. Summer pudding is seriously easy to make and tastes fabulous. It's probably quite healthy too.

Prep and Cook the Fruit

If you have strawberries, hull them and cut the big ones in half. Cherries: remove the stalks and pit them. Everything: give it a good wash. Reserve 3-4 bits of each type of fruit for decoration/garnish. Place the remaining fruit (except raspberries) and sugar into the saucepan and cook on medium-low heat until the sugar has melted and whole berries have split. This should take 2-3 minutes. Stir in the raspberries and set aside. You don't need to cook the raspberries in because they are soft enough already.

Build the Bread Case

Cut the crusts off the bread. Line a deep bowl (the one I use is 16cm/6 inch diameter and 10cm/4 inches deep) with cling film. You'll find this easier to do if you cut the film in half, otherwise it just wants to stick to the top of the bowl and itself. Place one slice of bread on the top of the fruit mixture so that one side soaks up some juice. Place it in the bottom of the bowl with the wet side down. Do the same with the rest of the bread and place the slices around the side of the bowl. Slightly overlap the slices and press down the joints to make them stick together. Fill in any gaps between slices with extra slivers of bread.

Fill and Chill the Pudding

Pour the fruit mix into the case - you might want to strain it a bit if you think the mixture is too wet. Fold any excess bits of bread over onto the top, and use another slice to fill the hole in the middle. Fold any spare cling film over the top and add a bit more so the pudding is cimpletely encased. Find a small plate or saucer that fits snugly in the top of the bowl, and place weights on it to compress the pudding. Place in the fridge and leave to chill, preferably overnight, or at least 4 hours.

Serve

Unwrap the pud and serve with cream, whipped cream or ice cream and the remaining whole fruit.

The video above is from the Keef Cooks YouTube channel. Click here to see the video recipe of Summer Pudding on YouTube.

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Ingredients & Info

1 kilo assorted berries / soft fruit

250 grams caster sugar

5-6 slices sliced white bread

PLUS

You can use any combination of the following: strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, cherries, redcurrants, blackberries. etc.

Serves 4 -6
Prep time: 15 minutes.
chill/set time: 4 hours.
Cooking time: 5 minutes.
Total time: 4 hours 20 minutes.

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