Ingredients

• 300g/10½oz caster sugar
• 600ml/20fl oz double cream
• 75g/2½oz raisins
• 75g/2½oz sultanas
• 75g/2½oz currants
• 75g/2½oz mixed candied peel
• chopped
• 150g/5½oz butter
• 1 soft white sandwich bread loaf
• sliced
• 5 free-range eggs
• 50g/1¾oz caster sugar
• 300ml/10fl oz milk
• 1 vanilla pod
• split
• 300ml/10fl oz double cream
• 100ml/3½fl oz apricot jam

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 160C/140C Fan/Gas 3.
• To make the caramel cream
• heat the sugar in a frying pan
• swirling every so often
• until you have a dark caramel. Pour in 300ml/10fl oz of double cream. Whip the remaining double cream until it falls off the whisk in ribbons
• and then fold it into the caramel cream mixture. Sieve into a clean bowl
• cover and allow to set overnight.
• To make the bread and butter pudding
• scatter some of the dried fruit into the bottom of a shallow baking dish. Melt the butter over a medium heat. Brush the bread slices generously with the melted butter and put a layer on top of the dried fruit. Continue to layer like this until the fruit and bread is all used up
• finishing with a layer of bread.
• Mix together the eggs and sugar in a large heatproof bowl. Bring the milk and vanilla to a simmer and pour this over the egg mixture. Pour in the cream and mix
• then strain though a fine sieve
• discarding the vanilla pod. Pour the mixture over the bread
• pushing it down to absorb all the liquid.
• Bake for 40–50 minutes
• until just set. Once cool
• gently heat the jam in a saucepan over a low heat. Glaze the top of the pudding with the warm apricot jam.
• To serve
• cut out the bread and butter pudding into potions. Transfer to serving bowls and add a spoonful of the caramel cream alongside.