Summer Pudding Recipe

Wash all the fruit, gently drying them on kitchen paper; keep the strawberries separate for now. In a large pan, combine the sugar and 3 tablespoons of water, heating gently until the sugar dissolves. Stir a few times to help it along.

Bring this mixture to a boil for 1 minute, then tip in all the fruit except the strawberries. Cook for 3 minutes over low heat, stirring 2-3 times, until the fruit has softened but mostly remains intact, surrounded by deep red juice. Set a sieve over a bowl and pour in the cooked fruit and its juices.

To make turning out the pudding easier, line a 1 1/4-liter basin with cling film. Overlap two pieces of cling film in the middle of the bowl; it's often simpler than trying to get one sheet to stick to all the curves. Let the edges overhang by about 15cm.

Next, trim the crusts off the bread. Cut 4 slices of bread in half, a little on an angle, to get two lopsided rectangles from each slice. Cut 2 slices into 4 triangles each, and leave the final piece of bread whole.

Dip the whole piece of bread into the reserved fruit juice for just a few seconds to coat it, then press this into the bottom of the basin. Dip the lopsided rectangular pieces one at a time, pressing them around the sides of the basin so they fit together neatly, alternating wide and narrow ends up. If you can't quite fit the last piece of bread, just trim it into a triangle, dip it in juice, and slot it in.

Spoon in the softened fruit, adding the fresh strawberries here and there as you go.

Dip the bread triangles into the remaining juice and arrange them on top of the fruit, trimming any overhang with scissors. Keep any leftover juice for serving. Bring the cling film up and loosely seal the pudding. Place a side plate on top and weigh it down with cans. Chill for at least 6 hours, or ideally overnight.

To serve, open out the cling film, then invert a serving plate on top and carefully flip the pudding over. Serve with the reserved juice, any extra berries, and a dollop of cream.