Black Cherry Batter Pudding

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C, fan oven 170°C, Gas Mark 5.
2. Tip the can of cherries into a sieve placed over a saucepan, to drain off most of the sauce. Reserve the sauce.
3. Grease a 1.5 litre shallow ovenproof dish with the butter. Add the cherries and spread them over the base.
4. Put the flour, salt, caster sugar, eggs, vanilla extract and milk into a bowl and beat together with a whisk to make a smooth batter. Stand for a few minutes to dissolve the sugar.
5. Stir the batter, then pour it over the cherries. Transfer to the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes, until the batter has puffed up and turned golden brown.
6. Meanwhile, warm the reserved sauce for 1-2 minutes. Sift icing sugar over the pudding and serve with the sauce.

Top tips

You could microwave the sauce on HIGH for 30 seconds to warm it through.

Make the batter a few hours ahead of time – just cover and keep refrigerated until needed.