Summer Pudding With Rum Whipped Cream

Ingredients:

• 2 cups fresh strawberries hulled and sliced
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3 cups fresh raspberries divided
• 2 cups fresh blueberries
• 2 tablespoons framboise eau-de-vie raspberry brandy
• 1 1 lb brioche bread or 1 1 lb egg bread
• 1/2 pint cold heavy cream
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon dark rum

Steps:

• Combine the strawberries
• sugar
• and 1/4 cup of water in a medium saucepan and cook uncovered over medium-low heat for 5 minutes
• Add 2 cups of raspberries and all the blueberries and cook
• stirring occasionally
• until the mixture reaches a simmer
• Cook for one minute
• Off the heat
• stir in the remaining raspberries and the framboise
• Slice the bread in 1/2-inch-thick slices and remove the crusts
• In the bottom of a 7 1/2-inch round by 3-inch high souffle or baking dish
• ladle about 1/2 cup of the cooked berry mixture
• Arrange slices of bread in a pattern this will become the top when its unmolded and then add more berry mixture to saturate
• Continue adding bread
• cutting it to fit the mold
• and berries
• Finish with bread and cooked berries
• using all of the fruit and syrup
• Place a sheet of plastic wrap loosely over the pudding
• Find a plate approximately the same diameter as the inside of the mold and place it on top
• Weight the mold with a heavy can and refrigerate
• Remove the weight after 6 to 8 hours
• Cover the pudding with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight
• Just before serving
• run a knife around the outside of the pudding and unmold it upside down onto a serving plate
• Whip the cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment
• When it starts to thicken
• add the sugar
• vanilla
• and rum
• Continue to whip until it forms stiff peaks
• Serve pudding in wedges with cold rum whipped cream