Recipe Time! – Bread Pudding

Last week when I went grocery shopping, I bought a load of bread. Nothing special but when unpacking the car, I noticed that the bread was on the bottom under the rest of the groceries (I didn’t pack the car, the bagger did). I was a bit upset but the good news was that the entire loaf was not squashed and I was able to make PB&J sandwiches for my children. I didn’t want to waste the bread and I haven’t had bread pudding in ages. So after a couple of days, I asked the ladies in my crochet group on Facebook. There are a lot of funny older ladies from the UK there and so I asked for a recipe.  I got one and a link to some more and after doing a bit of searching, I found one that would suit my needs and one that I will try very soon. I will share both of them with you today.

The first one that I found and the one that I used was from AllRecipes.com.

Recipe makes 1 – 8 inch square pan

What you need:

• 6 slices day-old bread
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 2 cups milk
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup raisins (optional)
• 2 tbsp butter, melted
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Break bread into small pieces into an 8 inch square baking pan. Drizzle melted butter or margarine over bread. If desired, sprinkle with raisins.
3. In a medium mixing bowl, combine eggs, milk, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla. Beat until well mixed. Pour over bread, and lightly push down with a fork until bread is covered and soaking up the egg mixture.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until the top springs back when lightly tapped.

Here is the other one that I will be using very soon!

What you need:

• 5 extra-large whole eggs
• 2 extra-large egg yolks
• 2 1/2 cups half-and-half
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons orange zest (2 oranges)
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• Brioche loaf
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• Maple syrup, to serve

Directions Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the whole eggs, egg yolks, half-and-half, honey, vanilla, orange zest, and salt. Set aside.

Slice the brioche loaf into 6 (1-inch) thick pieces. Lay half brioche slices flat in a 9 by 14 by 2-inch oval baking dish. Spread the raisins on top of the brioche slices, and place the remaining slices on top. Make sure that the raisins are between the layers of brioche or they will burn while baking. Pour the egg mixture over the bread and allow to soak for 15 minutes, pressing down gently.

Bake for 55 to 60 minutes or until the pudding puffs up and the custard is set. Remove from the oven and cool slightly before serving.

This is great comfort food (normally made in the colder months) could be eaten for breakfast, dessert or a small snack (granted the portion size isn’t too large!) that can be enjoyed by the whole family. I hope this will quickly become a favorite as well!

God Bless!