CHARLOTTE WITH DRIED FRUIT

Steps:

• Place all fruit in a 3-quart saucepan. Add cider and sugar, bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer until fruit is tender and mixture has thickened, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Remove crusts from bread. Cut slices to fit tightly in bottom of a 6- to 8-cup straight-sided ovenproof mold, like a charlotte mold or soufflé dish. Cut enough half-slices to fit around sides of mold, slightly overlapping. You should also have enough bread left to cover top.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Heat 1/4 cup butter in a skillet. Lightly sauté bread pieces for bottom of mold on both sides until golden. Place in mold. Add more butter and continue sautéing bread pieces for sides and fit them into mold. Pile fruit into bread-lined mold, pressing it in tightly. Brush bread for top of mold with remaining butter and put in place.
• Bake 15 minutes until top is well browned. Allow to cool 30 minutes, run a knife around outside, turn upside down onto a serving dish and unmold. Serve with crème fraîche. Charlotte can be frozen in its baking dish, thawed and baked at 300 degrees for 25 minutes to reheat before serving. It can also be frozen, unbaked, brought to room temperature and baked before serving.