Similar to fruit crisp in its variations and ability to feed a crowd, bread pudding is a wonderfully satisfying dessert, and very simple. It’s one of my favorite desserts, especially when made with a hearty country-style bread and topped with ice cream (and/or bourbon sauce!) This is a basic recipe; make it your own by adding some of the optional additions. An excellent thing to make for dessert when you only have an hour. The bread is better somewhat stale because it soaks up more of the liquid that way. You can make the bread pudding richer or lighter by using different milk products: nonfat for light, whole milk for fairly rich, and heavy cream for unbelievably sinful!
To serve six or so
- 1 good size loaf French bread or hearty whole grain bread, preferably slightly stale
- 4 eggs
- 2 cups milk
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, honey, or maple syrup
- Pinch salt
- Spices of choice: cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, ginger, allspice
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Tear loaf of bread into bite size pieces. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, sweetener, spices if using, and salt until well combined. Or blitz it in the blender (I like this option). Dump in the bread and let it soak for 15 minutes or so. Actually, the longer it can soak, the better. Pour into a greased baking pan and bake for 45 minutes or so.
OPTIONAL ADDITIONS
- Dried fruit
- Chocolate chips
- Booze (bourbon, whiskey, rum, tequila)
- Pineapple chunks
- Cut-up fresh fruit (pears, apples, peaches are good)
A final note: don’t go crazy with the additions. A bread pudding with raisins, chocolate chips, pineapple, pears, AND booze will not be good, it will just be weird. Limit yourself to one or two.
SERVE WITH
- Ice cream
- Booze sauce (make crème anglaise, add booze)
- Yogurt (for health nuts)
- Whipped cream (for hedonists)
- Fruit sauce (buzz some raspberries in the blender. Instant fruit sauce)
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