Ah, Bread Pudding. Some people say that it's origins are from British Cuisine. Maybe so, what a better way not to toss out your old bread. You could make Kvass, which is a old Russian alcoholic beverage that uses old bread, some yeast and sugar..... that's another post.Capirotada is the Mexican version that uses cheese combined with the bread and sometimes nuts, etc. My friend Mexico Bob has the complete history and a recipe for an more authentic Capirotada on his blog site. Go to : Capirotada to check it out and get a great history lesson to boot!
I made this for a dinner last night and failed to take the picture before we served it, so my apologies for not showing the play by play of making it, but after you read this you will see it is so easy that the remaining shot of the pudding in the bowl will still convey the story.
My bread pudding uses everything. Old bread, but it is best when using old sweet bread. Take anything you can find, old donuts, bear claws, snails, crullers, conchas, orejas, any danish pastry and even old regular baguettes etc and chop them up into about 1 inch cubes.
Take a bowl and place all of it and coat with about a half a cup of milk mixed with about 1/4 cup of your favorite booze.
I use rum or brandy.
In another bowl combine 4 eggs, 1 cup of milk, 1 cup of sugar, 1 cup of brown sugar, 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract, cinnamon and combine until totally Incorporated. You can use a hand mixer if you like, sometimes it is just as easy to just whisk it, than finding the mixer and the after use cleanup.
Once you have the custard ( yep that is what it is at this point) pour it on to the bread and place it into your dish that you are going to bake it in.
I will sometimes add about a 1/2 cup of raisins soaked in rum ( overnight ) into the stuff at this point.
Place into a 350 degree oven for about an hour. Check it after about 45 minutes and see if the center is jiggly. It should just be leaving the jiggly stage, pull it out and let it cool. ( I love the word jiggly)
That's it!
Oh, there is one thing you can add that makes it really good. Actually two things. Before you slide it in the oven cut about half a cube of butter into 1/2 inch cubes and put them in between a few of the bread pieces in the dish, before putting it in the oven. The added butter will richen up the dish ( Like it needs more richness )
The second is..........
Whiskey or Booze sauce which you drip on generously on the pudding as you serve it.
To make the sauce, melt 1 cube of butter, in a sauce pan, add 1 cup of confectioners sugar and whisk it to incorporate it into the butter, and carefully ( as not to spill it and cause a fire) add about 1/2 cup of rum, or whiskey or brandy, and whisk it in,
that's it, spoon over the pudding and tell everyone what a low calorie dessert this is.
Stuff you will need:
Old bread , donuts etc, to fill a 8 cup measuring cup.
1 cup of milk,
1 cube of butter* optional
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 tbs vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup raisins.
Whiskey sauce
1 cube of butter* not optional
1 cup of confectioners sugar
1/2 whiskey or booze of your choice.
I have made this for large crowds, 200 people or more and it is an easy make ahead, pretty inexpensive and with the addition of the Whiskey sauce a killer dessert. You just need to be carefull about the quantity of butter.... well you can try......
