Nourish: One unlikely fruit makes this summer pudding the berry best
When berry season comes around, I practically hear trumpets announcing the fruit's arrival at the local market. I am reliably ready to pounce - eager to pile the plump beauties onto my yogurt bowls, work them into salads, blend them into smoothies and bake them into pies and muffins.
When I first encountered this classic U.K. dessert - what Britons call a "pudding" - I was enthralled. It is stunning, with a cascade of berries mingling with layers of bread soaked and pressed in the fruit's brilliantly hued juices. The dish has the quality of an elegantly plated, berry-soaked sponge cake, but besides the fruit, it is made with little more than humble slices of bread. The usual recipe involves heaps of sugar though, so I decided to take a stab at a better-for-you version and was thrilled with the result.
The key twist is to take advantage of the inherent sweetness of ripe bananas, which are not a typical summer pudding component. Stirring the mashed banana into the juice that is rendered from heating the berries adds enough sweetness that only a little honey is needed to round it out, plus you get the added layer of banana flavor that pairs so well with strawberries and blueberries.
I also used whole-grain bread instead of white, a change that gives the dessert a somewhat healthier sensibility without sacrificing an essential tender, melt-in-your mouth quality. This is a treat that is truly worthy of its very special star ingredient.
• Ellie Krieger is a registered dietitian, nutritionist and author who hosts public television's "Ellie's Real Good Food." She blogs and offers a weekly newsletter at www.elliekrieger.com.