Summer Puddings

Fancy yourself as a would-be gastronome? Love nothing better than a spot of fine dining?

Whether you spend most of your time in the kitchen, or prefer digging into what has been whipped up for you, freelance writer Jessica, (whose first novel, Luxury is being published by Headline in 2009) will give you some food for thought.

The sun, longer days, afternoons in the park - there are lots of reasons why we love summer, but our favourite thing? The picnics. Or more specifically, the puddings.

All those luscious summer fruits can be used to devastating effect - plump, pink rhubarb makes a winning crumble, frozen berries and currants offer a convenient and easy summer pudding, or go for the lazy option and whip up Eton Mess using juicy strawberries.

Home-made or ready-bought (we won't tell) it's the perfect way to finish a summery feast for friends (or just you)...

Apple & Blackberry Crumble, £3.25

Cook Food take the last minute stress out of having friends round with meals prepared using the same ingredients as you would at home. Their blackberry and apple crumble is perfect comfort food for a cooler summer evening, and all that fruit means it stays light.

Available at www.CookFood.net

Frozen British Berries & Currants, £2.64

In an ideal world, we’d spend a pleasant few hours picking the ingredients from the garden for a homemade summer pudding. Ocado has done all the hard work for us with these boxes of frozen summer fruits, great when smothered with melted white chocolate…

Available at www.Ocado.com

Lemon & Pimm’s Pudding, £3.30

Anyone for Pimms? Georgie Porgie’s puddings have taken this British summer fave and transformed it into a delicious pud. This lemon and Pimms number proves that steamed puddings don’t have to mean heavy stodge. Pimm's fanatics might just wash it all down with a glass of, well, Pimm's...

Available at www.GeorgiePorgiesPuddings.co.uk

Organic Rhubarb Crown, £4.99

Some say it’s a sign that you’re getting on a bit, but nothing beats the satisfaction of picking and eating fruit and vegetables that you’ve grown with your own fair, perfectly manicured hands… Whip up a rhubarb crumble with crème anglaise – you could even pretend you made it yourself, just don’t forget to hide the jar…

Available at www.RocketGardens.co.uk

Raspberries, £2.75

Even so-called pudding haters (yes, apparently they do exist) love Eton Mess, which takes the best seasonal berries and combines them with cream and meringues. Vary the fruit as the whim takes you, and either make your own meringue then bash it up, or buy ready made – Marks & Spencer do good ones.

Available at www.Natoora.co.uk

Gooseberry Posset, £1.34

For those rare days when Britain turns up the temperature, individual gooseberry possets provide a dash of cool, fruity loveliness for the end of a meal. These contain a touch of elderflower, so a white wine spritzer with a glug of St Germain would go down very nicely alongside…

Available at www.AbelandCole.co.uk

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