From left: THE SWISS CLASSIC... | Traditional Bircher muesli, a nourishing bowl of oats, nuts, fruit and cream, essentially prepares itself while you sleep; ...REMADE AS A TERRINE | This apricot, blueberry and oat terrine takes many of the same elements and presents them in pretty layers. James Ransom for The Wall Street Journal, Food Styling by Heather Meldrom, Prop Styling by Stephanie Hanes

IN THE CORNER of New England that my family calls home, midsummer means berries. The bittersweet irony of this bounty is that just when the fruit comes flooding in—ripe (literally) for baking into muffins, or scattering over pancakes—a walloping heat wave typically arrives too, and firing up the oven begins to feel masochistic. Blueberry scones will have to wait: This is Bircher muesli season.

An ideal-for-summertime twist on ordinary oatmeal, Bircher muesli is an amalgam of uncooked rolled oats, dried fruit and nuts that's tossed with yogurt, shredded apple and a generous splash of milk and left to soak overnight until creamy and chilly. Invented near the turn of the last century by a Swiss doctor and dietary guru named Maximilian Bircher-Benner, muesli (literally, "little mush") was originally designed as a nutrient-dense therapeutic meal. Today, muesli is a staple of both grand hotel breakfast buffets and grocery store cereal aisles.

Dr. Bircher-Benner's original recipe called for hazelnuts and condensed milk, but anyone can tailor their own version. My current favorite blends toasted almonds, golden sultanas, dried apricots and a few spoonfuls of unsweetened coconut flakes. Mix a big batch on Friday, stir in some apple, a dollop of yogurt, a splash of orange juice and a ribbon of half-and-half, and put it to bed in the fridge. Come Saturday morning, scoop some into a bowl, strew it with fresh berries and another luxurious stream of cream, and you have a splendid summer breakfast without breaking a sweat.

Lately, though, I've found myself wondering if I can't have it both ways—whether there might be a way to translate the cool, creamy appeal of Bircher muesli into something that's more pastry than porridge. My first thoughts went to summer pudding, the no-cook British dish made by lining a pudding mold with trimmed white bread and a generous, juicy heap of sweetened fruit.

But even a summer pudding requires more fussing and fiddling than my summertime self can muster. What I wanted was a rustic riff, and I found it in "Serious Pig," a brilliant collection of recipes and essays from a pair of fellow New Englanders, John Thorne and Matt Lewis Thorne. Their version is informed less by the British classic than by two all-American sources: a recipe called "Maine Blueberry Pudding" in the 1959 edition of the Fannie Farmer cookbook, and John's memories of making an unbaked blueberry bread-and-butter pudding alongside his grandmother at their family's summer cottage.

The basic form is beyond simple: Trim the crusts from a few slices of gently toasted bread, smear them with butter and layer them in a loaf pan with stewed berries. Cover the last layer with plastic wrap and a bit of weight for compression and then pop the pan in the refrigerator. In my own kitchen, I made only the slightest adjustments, swapping in oatmeal bread for their plain white, reducing the sugar a tad, adding sliced apricots and, in the interest of keeping the stove off entirely, stewing the berries not on the burner but in the microwave.

The next morning, I turned the loaf out and sliced it like a terrine (though lord knows Ms. Farmer never would have called it that). Served with a drizzle of cold cream, it was midsummer breakfast nirvana: cool and tart, textured with nutty flecks of oat and succulent fruit and so effortless to prepare, it might just make you welcome a heat wave.

Midsummer Bircher Muesli

Active Time: 10 minutes Total Time: 5½ hours (includes chilling) Serves: 6


½ cup sliced almonds

¼ cup unsweetened coconut flakes

1/3 cup diced dried apricots

¼ cup currants

¼ sultanas

2 Granny Smith apples, cored and grated

Juice of ½ lemon

3 tablespoons orange juice

3 tablespoons honey or agave syrup

3 cups old-fashioned oatmeal (not instant)

3 cups half-and-half, plus more for drizzling

1 cup whole-milk yogurt

Pinch of cinnamon

1½ cups fresh fruit, such as blueberries, blackberries, raspberries or pitted cherries

What to Do

1. In a small skillet set over medium heat, toast almonds and coconut flakes, stirring frequently, until golden and fragrant, 2-3 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and add apricots, currants, sultanas, apples, lemon and orange juices, honey, oatmeal, half-and-half, yogurt and cinnamon. Stir to combine. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 5 hours or overnight.

2. To serve, divide muesli evenly among six bowls. Drizzle with half-and-half and garnish with fresh fruit.

Apricot, Blueberry and Oat Terrine

Active Time: 20 minutes Total Time: 5½ hours (includes chilling) Serves: 6


1½ cups sliced apricots

1½ cup blueberries

¼ cup sugar

Pinch of cinnamon

8 slices oatmeal bread, crusts removed and lightly toasted

2 tablespoons butter

1 cup heavy cream

What to Do

1. Combine apricots, blueberries and sugar in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Let rest until sugar dissolves and fruit begins to release its juices, 15 minutes. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and microwave on high 2 minutes. Stir fruit and microwave, uncovered, 1 minute more. Add cinnamon and stir to incorporate.

2. Butter bread on one side and lay 2 slices, side by side, butter side down, into the bottom of a 9- by 5-inch loaf pan. Spoon a third of fruit over toast, then cover with two more slices of toast, butter side down. Continue layering fruit and toast, finishing with a layer of toast. Cover pan with plastic wrap and place a small plastic bag filled with pie weights or dried beans on top. Refrigerate at least 5 hours or overnight.

3. Turn terrine out onto a large plate. To serve, slice and drizzle with cream.

—Adapted from "Serious Pig" by John Thorne and Matt Lewis Thorne (North Point Press)