29 June 2010

Berries Galore - Have some summer pudding!

Where do the best desserts come from? My answer: England! No, Daryl isn't standing behind me with a dangerous weapon. And no, nobody is paying me for my answer. I mean it. The English really do take their puddings seriously. The best pudding place ever is an unpretentious pub in Exeter that Jason and Marie used to frequent back when they lived there. Unfortunately, I don't remember the name of the pub, but oh. My. God. We had the best Banoffee pie there. We also had an unforgettable trifle there. My favorite English dessert is Summer Berry Pudding, which I make every year at this time of the year. The first one I ever had was from Sainsbury, an Englsih grocery chain, about fifteen years ago. Served with fresh double cream it is to die for. It took me about a decade to realize that I didn't have to wait to go to England to have Summer Berry Pudding. The bloody Internet was sure to have recipes! After experimenting with various recipes I have found the following to work the best:

You'll need: 8 cups of a selection of fresh seasonal berries such as strawberries, boysenberries, raspberries, blueberries, etc.; 10 oz berry preserve (jam); 3 tablespoons sugar, and half a loaf of soft, white bread with crusts removed and cut into thin slices.

Prepare fruit and toss it all in a saucepan. Add the preserve and simmer on medium heat for about 5 minutes. Use a 2 quart bowl to assemble the pudding. First pour about a cup of berry mixture into bottom of bowl. Lay bread over it in a single layer. Pour fruit mixture over this and continue with the layering. Make sure that the fruit juices soak into the bread. The top layer should be berries. Cover with plastic wrap and press down with a heavy plate. Cool in refrigerator for a few hours, or overnight. And that's it! It's so easy.
Serve this with fresh cream, or custard, or yogurt if you want to be healthy!

Let me know if you make it and like it!

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