With the bounty of seasonal summer fruits becoming available, planning a simple dessert for the Christmas table has never been easier.

The Adelaide Central Market has shared this recipe for frozen summer fruit puddings – an alternative to the traditional boiled fruit pudding – which can be made ahead of time and stored in the freezer until ready to serve. It has also offered tips for serving berries that require little or no cooking.

Frozen Summer Fruit Puddings

Preparation time: 25 minutes
Freezing time: Overnight

Ingredients

1 yellow peach
2 apricots
125g raspberries
125g blackberries
125g strawberries, hulled
4 egg yolks
100g sugar
2 tsp vanilla bean paste
300ml pure cream
2 egg whites
125g ready-made meringues (eg toffee and almond meringues), roughly crushed
To garnish: red currants, icing sugar

Method

Lightly grease a 1 litre pudding basin or 8 individual pudding basins and line with plastic wrap, allowing plenty to overhang.

Slice the peach and apricots in half, removing the stones, and cut into 1cm cubes. Place in a medium bowl and add 250g of the mixed berries, reserving the rest for garnish. Mix gently to combine.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the egg yolks, sugar and vanilla bean paste together over a saucepan of simmering water. Using electric beaters, whisk until pale and mousse-like, then remove from heat and allow to cool.

In a separate mixing bowl, whip cream to soft peaks then fold into yolk mixture until well combined.

Place egg whites in a clean mixing bowl and beat to stuff peaks. Gently fold into yolk mixture until well combined.

Add the mixed fruit and crushed meringue to the yolk mixture, folding gently to incorporate.

Carefully spoon the mixture into prepared pudding basin. Fold the overhanging plastic wrap over the top and place in freezer overnight.

To serve: allow large pudding to stand for 20 minutes or individual puddings for 5 minutes before turning onto serving plates. Top with red currants and garnish with a dusting of icing sugar and reserved berries.

Makes 8

Three ways with berries

1. Combine 1kg crushed strawberries, 1kg sugar and 1/3 cup of lemon juice in a large saucepan over a low heat. Heat gently until sugar dissolves, then boil until mixture reaches setting point (105°C) for homemade strawberry jam.

2. Line a 1 litre pudding bowl with plastic wrap then slices of bread. Heat 1kg of mixed berries with 1 cup sugar over a low heat for 5 minutes or until sugar dissolves. Spoon fruit into prepared bowl, cover with extra bread, wrapping tightly with plastic wrap. Place a small plate on top with a weight and refrigerate overnight for a simple summer pudding.

3. Drizzle a little balsamic vinegar over sliced strawberries and finish with a grind of black pepper. Serve on a pavlova, sponge cake or with ice cream.