Boozy Summer Pudding – Bread + (Bob Geldof's) Berries + Booze = Brilliant !

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I’ve mentioned my school cookery class before. The course was “How to Make Kids Loathe Food”. Without doubt, it worked for certain dishes – like Summer Pudding. Honestly, how can stuffing bread with a few berries in sweet syrup ever amount to anything, especially if the bread is industrial and the berries from a tin.

When a friend served me Summer Pudding, I poked at it suspiciously remembering the awful school version. However, when I ventured to taste it, my taste buds died and went to heaven. It was one of the sunniest desserts I’ve eaten in a long time. You need to use day-old bread with integrity – that is, with a good springy crumb - and ripe fresh berries. However, the key ingredient is Time – it’s essential for the bread to soak up all the lovely berry juices so make it the day before you need it.

Like any simple dish, it will have a thousand variations. Purists will argue over the type of berries to include. I’ve chosen some of my favourites and included the slightly autumnal blackberries because they were sweet and available, and free (the ones in the picture were from Bob Geldof's garden in Faversham - well they were leaning over the wall...) . Vary the proportions according to preference and availability. In total you’ll need about 1.125 kg of berries.

For a 1 litre pudding serving 4 – 6 people you will need…

400g strawberries

1 tablespoon caster sugar

225g raspberries

225g blackberries

150g redcurrants

125g blueberries

150g caster sugar

3 tablespoons Triple Sec, Cointreau or other orange liqueur

4 tablespoons water

7 – 9 slices of good white bread. This should be a day old, cut into slices 1cm thick, crusts removed

Whipped cream to serve

Method

First choose a few perfect fruits for the top of the pudding and set aside.

Hull and halve the strawberries and place them in a non-metallic bowl. Sprinkle with the tablespoon of sugar.

Place the rest of the fruit in a medium saucepan with the remaining sugar, orange liqueur and water. Heat gently until the sugar has dissolved and the fruit has begun to release its juices – this will only take 3 – 5 minutes. You want the fruit to hold its shape as much as possible. As soon as the sugar has dissolved, remove from the heat and add the strawberries to the pan. Stir gently to distribute them throughout the rest of the fruit. Taste and add more sugar if required.

Line a 1 litre pudding bowl with cling film, leaving an overhang large enough to cover the base of the pudding when folded back across. (It’s easier to line the bowl with two overlapping strips of cling film rather than trying to shape one sheet to fit the bowl.)  Cut a circle from one slice of bread large enough to cover the base of the pudding bowl. Do this as neatly as possible as this will form the top of the finished dessert. Cut and arrange slices of bread to line the sides of the bowl – like a bread patchwork - leaving no gaps. If you have any tendency towards engineering or architecture, this is your moment to shine.

Spoon the warm berries and boozy juice into the lined pudding bowl and finish with a layer of bread to seal in the berries.

Berries n booze n bread should equal bleaughhh... but Alchemy intervenes!

Fold the cling film skirt over the pudding and cover with a small plate or saucer that just fits inside the pudding bowl. Weigh it down – I sit a couple of 400g tins on top of the plate. When it has cooled, transfer it to the fridge and leave it – still weighted – overnight.

To serve, fold back the cling film. Cover the bowl with a large inverted serving plate. Carefully flip the pudding upside down and remove the cling film. Decorate the pudding with the reserved fruit. Cut into wedges and serve with whipped cream.

Note: if you prefer to leave the booze out, substitute it for the same amount of good quality berry cordial (undiluted).

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What kind of fool am I? Roasted Peach, Basil and Cardamom Fool, that's what!

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One of the food horrors from my childhood was Black Forest Gateau. In theory it should have been delightful – rich chocolate cake soaked in kirsch and filled with cherries and cream. The reality was a mass-produced travesty of cheap ingredients that turned up at too many birthday parties and didn’t pass muster when compared to my mum’s home baking. No, I don’t think I was a little food snob. Like most kids, I just knew Yuk! when I tasted it.

Instead of becoming a classic of the dessert trolley, the BFG has been consigned to that same hall of infamy as the prawn cocktail, and cheese hedgehogs.

In contrast, a dessert that has stood the test of time – originating in the Middle Ages – is the fruit fool (also spelt foole). This simple classic combination of tart fruit folded through sweet custard causes my taste buds to swoon with pleasure time and again. Play with the flavours and the seasonality of fruit to find your own perfect combination. At the moment, mine is this peach of a dessert.

Mmmm... a peach of a dessert!

For 8 servings of Summer you will need…

For the fruit base:

8 ripe peaches, halved, stone removed

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

8 fresh basil leaves, shredded

2 tablespoons orange flower water (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180°C

Rub the peaches with the olive oil and place in one layer in an ovenproof dish deep enough to catch any juice. Scatter with the basil leaves and place in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove and leave to cool before chopping into a rough puree. Stir in the orange flower water if using.

For the custard:

1 litre fresh full-fat milk

200mls single cream

the seeds from 1 cardamom pod, crushed

8 egg yolks (the whites can be frozen for later use or you could whisk up a meringue for tomorrow’s dessert…)

4 tablespoons runny honey (or sugar)

3 tablespoons cornflour

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

To finish

200mls cream whipped into soft peaks (or Greek yoghurt)

8 sprigs of fresh basil or mint

Place the milk, cream and cardamom in a large saucepan over a medium heat and bring to simmering.

While the milk is heating, place the egg yolks in a large bowl with the honey (or sugar), cornflour and vanilla extract and whisk until combined. Remove the milk from the heat and slowly add it to the egg mixture, whisking all the time. (Never add the egg to the milk unless you want sweet scrambled eggs!) 

When all the milk has been added return the mixture to the saucepan and place over a low heat and stir until thickened. Be careful not to let the mixture boil as it can become slightly grainy in texture. Once the custard has thickened, taste and add a little more honey (or sugar) if you prefer a sweeter dessert. Remove from the heat and leave to cool, stirring occasionally to prevent a skin forming on the surface of the custard.

To serve, divide the fruit between 8 glasses or bowls. Spoon the cold custard over the fruit. Top with a swirl of cream and a sprig of basil or mint. Chill until needed.

(You can, if you prefer, fold the fruit and cream through the custard before serving but I prefer the separate layers).

Other favourite fool flavours include:

Gooseberry with Elderflower Custard

Rhubarb with Cointreau Custard

Damson or Plum with plain old Vanilla Custard

Loganberry with Lemongrass Custard

Cherry with Almond Custard, topped with crushed Amaretti biscuits

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