Black Forest Pudding

Method

1. Brush a 1.5-litre pudding basin with oil (if you  don’t have a 1.5-litre pudding basin, use a smaller  one and serve any fruit that won’t fit on the side). Line the basin with a double layer of cling film, overhanging the basin at the top. 

2. Put the blackberries, cherries, grapes and sugar in a saucepan with 3 tbsp water. Cover and gently heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has melted and the fruit is syrupy. Add the blackcurrants and blueberries, cover and cook gently for 2 mins until the fruit is just softened. Take off the heat and cool.

3. Strain the fruit into a colander set over a bowl. Leave for 5 mins to drain well, then stir the cassis  or Ribena into the juices. Trim the crusts from the bread slices and discard, losing as little bread as possible. Use a pastry brush to spread some berry juice over one side of each slice. Cut a circle from one slice (or two semi-circles from two slices) that will neatly cover the base of the basin, and  push in, juice-side down.

4. Reserve some bread so that you have enough  to cover the top of the basin, then halve the rest of  the slices into fat fingers, trimming to the correct length to line the sides of the basin. Line the basin with the slices, juice-side down, overlapping the edges of the bread slightly and pressing them to  stay in place, until the basin is completely lined  with bread. Patch any gaps with scraps. 

5. Reserve a couple of spoonfuls of fruit to serve, then spoon the remainder into the bread-lined basin, squishing the fruit down to level it. Reserve 150ml of the juices with the reserved berries, then pour the rest into the basin, focusing on pouring it around the edges to soak into the bread. Use the reserved bread to neatly cover the top, juice-side up, then loosely cover with cling film. Find a small plate that fits snugly inside the basin so that it is in contact with the pudding, then weigh it down with four 400g cans. Chill in the fridge overnight with the reserved juice and berries.

6. To serve, unwrap and invert the basin onto a serving plate with a lip to hold any juices. Lift  off the basin, holding the cling film down tightly  as you pull to help you remove it. Peel off the cling film around the pudding. If any white bread patches are visible, spoon over some juice to colour it. Spoon the rest of the berries and juice on top of the pudding and serve with clotted or single cream, if you like.