First off I have to admit that the thought of summer fruit pudding has never filled me with excitement. I mention in passing to my German friend that I was thinking of giving it a go, and her response was quite funny. "Are you crazy!? Soggy bread and squishy fruit, don't do it. It sound revolting!" LOL. Anyway this in tern, made me decide to give it a go and try and find a recipe / approach that was not only delicious but also looked really appetizing.
So Sonja, here you go. I dare you to try it and dislike. I bet you a jar off nutella (she's obsessed with Nutella) that you will not only like it, but will LOVE it!
So after doing a lot of researching, I found that Gordon Ramsay had created such a recipe and it uses Brioche instead of standard bread. Brioche, not cake not bread something in between... and perfect for such a recipe.
The next task was to find a brioche loaf of bread, now I could've made it myself. But you know, sometimes it's ok not to do it all yourself. Saying that, at some point I'll probably give it a go. Anyway it turns out that most supermarkets sell them for around £1.70, so it doesn't even break the bank. Tip: Tesco's version is quite flat and you need one that you can cut into circles. I found Sainbury's & Waitrose sell such a loaf and also the small shops in London sell St Pierre Brioche sliced loaf - which is perfect.
INGREDIENTS
Stock syrup
- 250 grams caster sugar
- 250 ml water
- Juice of half a lemon
- 250g ripe blackcurrants
- 100ml stock syrup
- Sprig of mint
- 100ml crème fraîche
- zest of 1 lime
- 1-2 tbsp icing sugar or lemon curd
- 200g ripe strawberries
- 100g ripe blackberries or redcurrants
- 100g ripe blueberries
- 50g caster sugar
- 100g raspberries
- Frozen raspberry sorbet
Place sugar, water and lemon juice in a pot and bring to a simmer. Remove and once cool store in an airtight container in the fridge.
Now, on the actual Berry Stacks Method:
1. First, make the blackcurrant coulis. Place the blackcurrants into a pan with the stock syrup and mint and simmer for a few minutes until the fruit has softened and starts to bleed. Remove the mint, whiz the mixture in a food processor or blender, then rub through a fine sieve. Leave to cool completely, then chill in the refrigerator for at least two hours or overnight.
2. In a bowl, mix the crème fraîche with the lime zest and a little icing sugar to taste, I used lemon curd :). Cover the bowl with cling film and chill until ready to use.
3. Cut off all the crusts from the brioche loaf then cut the loaf into eight long thin slices. (You can chill the loaf overnight to make it easier to slice). Using a 5-6cm deep round cutter, cut out 12-18 rounds from the brioche.
4. Hull and slice the strawberries crossways into rounds. Halve the blackberries and blueberries (this will enable them to lie flat between the brioche layers). Taste the fruit and dust with a little icing sugar if they are too tart.
5. Lay a small square of baking parchment on a board and place the pastry cutter on top. Quickly dip a brioche round into the blackcurrant coulis to coat all over, then place in the base of the cutter or even better, a rosti ring. Arrange a layer of strawberry slices in the cutter, then cover with another coulis-dipped brioche round. Make a layer of blueberries and blackberries on top, followed by a final piece of dipped brioche. Press down lightly to set the shape of the pudding stacks.
6. Using a palette knife, slide the stack onto a serving plate, discarding the paper. Remove the cutter and use to make the other stacks. Top each stack with a quenelle of the crème fraîche and a final drizzle of blackcurrant coulis. Garnish the plates with a few raspberries and if you're feeling extra naughty a small scoop of raspberry sorbet ;)
Now how good does this look!?! Can't tell you how excited I was about the results, to the point it could be classed as one of my fav puds!!
