To reduce the stress of the Christmas lunch or dinner it’s a good idea to include a dessert that can be prepared ahead of time. This is the most gorgeous and show-stopping Christmas dessert and it’s actually very easy to assemble last minute.

1½ sheets puff pastry (use Paneton flaky puff for the ultimate buttery layers)

2 tablespoons icing sugar, plus extra to serve

3 cups mixed berries - strawberries, blueberries, raspberries

Flowers to decorate, optional

Mascarpone cream

250g mascarpone

300ml cream

¾ cup icing sugar

1 teaspoon extract

1. Heat oven to 200 C fan bake.
2. Cut the full sheet of pastry in half and place the 3 puff pastry sheets on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Dust with icing sugar then cover with another sheet of baking paper on top and another baking tray to sandwich the pastry. If they don’t all fit on one tray, cook them in batches. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the pastry is dark brown and caramelised. Allow to cool completely. Trim the edges of each cooked pastry sheet with a bread knife making sure they are all the same size. These will now store for up to a week in an airtight container until ready to assemble and serve.
3. For the filling; Whisk mascarpone, cream, icing sugar and vanilla until soft peaks form. Watch it carefully from this point as you don’t want to overwhip it. Whisk on low a little longer until it holds its shape.
4. To assemble: Spoon cream into a piping bag if you want to be fancy (or just spoon it over the pastry) and pipe a third of the cream over one piece of the pastry, then top with a third of the berries (cut large strawberries smaller) and repeat for the two remaining layers, sprinkling over small flowers and a dust of icing sugar to serve.

To serve: Use a sharp bread or other serrated knife to cut into slices.