Peach Streusel Cheesecake
BBC Good Food
A creamy cheesecake will always be a winner, no matter the time of year. Add roasted hazelnuts and ripe fleshy peaches and it’s an instant summer classic. Find the recipe here.
Kiwi And Mascarpone Tarts
Waitrose
These pretty little tarts look deeply impressive and make the perfect pud to round off a lunch party in the garden. And the best thing of all is that, thanks to the ready-made pastry cases, they’re a doddle to put together. The perfect sweet summer bite. Find the recipe here.
Pear And Summer Fruit Frangipane Tart
Great British Chefs/ Galvin Brothers
The Galvin Brothers never put a foot wrong culinarily speaking. This beautiful tart is testament to their flair for style and substance, marrying the beautiful flavours of the pears and summer berries with the light sweetness of the frangipane. It looks an absolute knock-out, so it’s perfect as a make-ahead pud for when you have guests over. Find the recipe here.
Summer Berry Swiss Roll
National Trust
© National Trust Images/William Shaw
A Swiss roll is a classic sweet treat that’s always redolent of childhood. This one, courtesy of The National Trust, is perfect for summer parties in the garden, thanks to the smattering of berries that sit atop it (bonus points if you’ve picked them yourself). You can make the compote up to two days ahead, so it’s easy to put together too, shooting it straight to the top of our list of all-time greats. Find the recipe here.
Wild Bramble Mousse
Mary Berry
We are getting to that time of year when the hedgerows begin to groan with juicy blackberries crying out to be gobbled up. If you’ve had your fill of blackberry crumble and you’re kitted out with jam, why not try this beauty from Mary Berry? You’ll need gelatine, but otherwise, you’re likely to have the rest of the ingredients knocking around for this moreish concoction, which will delight young and old alike and is suitably light for rounding off a summer feast. Do yourself a favour and follow Mary’s advice to freeze some of your blackberry harvest so that you may make this again long after we’ve rounded the corner into autumn. Find the recipe here.
Calvados Syllabub
Nigella
Is it a drink? Is it a pudding? For something heady and alcoholic, this calvados and cider-doused cream concoction is cloud-like and dreamy. As Nigella writes, ‘Syllabub is one of those ethereal, dreamy confections which seem at odds with the description 'pudding'. But this scented, whipped cream, piled up to swell cloudily out of its container, is a perfect way to end dinner and gloriously easy to boot.’ Find the recipe here.
Pineapple And Lime Sorbet
Deliciously Ella
If you’ve ever been put off making your own ice-cream on the basis that you’d need a maker to pull off anything that you’d actually want to eat, do try this wonderfully cooling recipe. With just four ingredients – frozen pineapple, a lime, coconut yogurt and maple syrup – it’s a doddle to make and healthy too. How many ice creams can you say that of? Find the recipe here.
Frozen Chocolate Banana Lollies
Melissa Hemsley
If you’re making a summery pud for little ones, do give this a go. It’s fun, tactile, delicious and healthy, plus little ones get to choose their own topping. We’re taken with freeze-dried raspberries as a topping, although, frankly, it’s all about the dipped chocolate as far as we’re concerned. Find the recipe here.
By Nancy Alsop
August 2023
