This week, I bring you my ultimate winter berry Christmas pudding – winter berries simmered with sweet crème de cassis and layered on Madeira cake, followed by custard whipped with silky mascarpone and lastly topped with softly whipped cream – heaven! I also love to serve some bite-sized mince pies along with the pudding on a platter.
After pudding, I always serve my easy-to-make chocolate florentines infused with aromatic rosewater and topped with rose petals and pistachios.
To make them, melt 300g of dark chocolate in a bowl suspended over a pan of simmering water. Once melted, stir in 50g finely chopped pistachios and one tablespoon of rosewater. Take a teaspoon of the melted chocolate and spread onto a sheet of parchment paper, to form even-sized discs.
Sprinkle some more finely chopped pistachios and dried rose petals on top. Gently press the pieces of each of the ingredients into the melted chocolate and place in a fridge to set for an hour.
Serves: 8
Preparation time: 20 mins
Chilling time: two hours
Ingredients
500g bag frozen mixed berries
70g golden caster sugar
50ml crème de cassis
200g Madeira cake, sliced
250ml tub mascarpone cheese
500ml tub custard
1 tbsp vanilla extract
300ml double cream, softly whipped
Method
1. Place the berries and sugar in a pan over a low heat and simmer for two minutes, then pour in the crème de cassis and set aside to cool.
2. Place a layer of Madeira cake at the bottom of a large trifle bowl and spoon two-thirds of the berry mix on top.
3. Whisk the mascarpone in a mixing bowl until it’s smooth but make sure it doesn’t get too runny – you want it to remain slightly thick. Then gradually beat in the custard and vanilla extract. Spoon the mixture on top of the cake and berries, followed by the whipped cream.
4. Chill for a couple of hours in a fridge, and just before you serve it, pour the remaining berries on top.
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