Archive for: bread pudding
I like that fact that bread pudding is a cross between a custard and a cake. I also like that it tends to be a family-style dessert, baked in a big casserole dish or a loaf pan and and portioned out into both big and small servings. It can be made in advance and can also serve a crowd. But as nice as it is as a family-style, comfort food dish, it can be just as nice when it is put in a smaller package made into something a little more elegant. With single serving bread puddings, you get the flavor of all that comfort food in a dressed up package.
These Individual Nutella Bread Puddings are very rich tasting and not too sweet. There is quite a lot of Nutella – a creamy chocolate hazelnut spread – in the bread pudding mixture, so these have a nice hazelnut flavor to the, as well as a good chocolate flavor. Adding in some chocolate chips really ups the amount of chocolate you taste in each bite – especially when this bread pudding is served hot and the chips are still melty. These are also tasty when chilled, though leftovers will heat up well in the microwave.
These puddings are easy enough to make for everyday occasions, but they make a fantastic and easy-to-make special occasion dessert as well. Valentine’s Day and anniversaries in particular are perfect for a chocolaty dessert like this, where you can give your loved one his or her own serving, or the two of you can split one. I like these plain, but a little dollop of whipped cream or even a bit of vanilla ice cream melting on top of a hot bread pudding would really finish things off well. +Continue Reading
Bread pudding comes in all different forms, from recipes that can be individually sliced and served very neatly to recipes so pudding-like that the must be scooped and served in a bowl. Recently, Anna from Cookie Madness came across one that is a little more unusual and talked me into trying it out. White Chocolate Challah Bread Pudding she made comes from a cookbook called The Fig’s Table and is unusual because it has an egg rich base that makes the finished bread pudding turn out to be more like a custard than anything else.
In fact, the method of making this bread pudding is a lot like the method of making a custard, since the pudding is baked in a water bath! The water bath keeps the custard that fills the pan cooking at a slow, even pace, so you end up with a dessert that is very rich and very smooth. This method is a great fit for this recipe because there is a lot of custard to cook. The custard is the egg and milk mixture that the bread soaks in, and this one almost has more bread than custard. As it bakes, the bread soaks up a lot of the custard and helps to give the dessert structure, but doesn’t distract you from the soft, richness of the pudding. The white chocolate flavor really came through in the end, so it is well worth using a good quality white chocolate. I used Guittard. Like Anna, I would not recommend using white chocolate chips.
As with other bread puddings, you can really use any kind of bread in this recipe. I would strongly recommend going with challah or another soft, rich bread like brioche because both will blend in very well with the richness of the custard. Plain white bread would be a good fallback, but I wouldn’t use anything with a strong flavor that might detract from the vanilla notes in the white chocolate.
I started with the same recipe Anna posted and cut it down to make about half as many servings, as Anna said that it was very rich and I didn’t really have the need to serve 12 (or more) people with the recipe. I baked it in a loaf pan and the procedure was just the same. If you want to serve more, use the original recipe.
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I really like that flavor and the texture of my cream cheese bread pudding, as it’s slightly firmer than many bread puddings and has a hint of cheesecakiness to it. It’s almost like having two desserts in one. I decided to take advantage of the cheesecake angle of the dessert and play with the flavors in the dish a little bit. Strawberries, for instance, are a popular topping for cheesecake, so they seemed like they would be a good match in the dish in terms of flavor. Bread pudding is a dish that can handle a lot of extra moisture, too, so even though fresh strawberries can become slightly watery during baking in some dishes, it didn’t seem like it would present any problem with the bread base of this dish.
In the finished dish, both the strawberries and the bread pudding both held up beautifully in this recipe, resulting in a dessert that tasted like a rich, moist strawberry shortcake with a hint of strawberry cheesecake to it. It definitely showcases the strawberries against the milder vanilla and cream flavors in the background. I used fresh strawberries to make this bread pudding, but frozen strawberries can also be used. If possible, I would let the frozen berries thaw for a little while to allow some of the liquid to drain off of them and to make them easier to slice. Large, whole frozen berries are a bit too large for this recipe and could make the bread pudding a little bit mushy.
Serve this bread pudding with a little bit of whipped cream. It can be served while it is still warm from the oven (it should cool for a little while before serving, however), but it also tastes great when chilled, so it can easily be made in advance. The bread pudding should keep, covered, in the fridge for about 3-4 days.
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Bread pudding is a great dessert because it is fairly easy to make and is a great way to use up a half loaf of leftover bread that is just a touch past its prime. That said, it’s also delicious enough that I’ve been known to run out to the store to buy a fresh loaf just to make some.
Most bread puddings have a custardy base made of milk and/or cream and eggs, similar to the mixture that french toast is soaked in before cooking it. For this bread pudding, I wanted to try something a little different and added some cream cheese into the basic custard mixture, adding a little bit of that tangy cream cheese flavor to the dish. I was inspired to give this a try when, during a dinner out, one of my dining companions just couldn’t decide between a mini cheesecake and homemade bread pudding We ended up getting both for the table and splitting them, and it was apparent that the textures and flavors would be very complementary, as both are often creamy and mild desserts on their own.
The finished bread pudding tasted like a very mild cheesecake, with just a hint of cream cheese flavor mixed in with a strong vanilla flavor, and had a slightly firmer texture than some of the softer bread puddings I’ve tried. The cream cheese blended in very well into the rest of the milk-egg mixture and had no problems being absorbed by the bread cubes that make up the base of this dessert. I would opt for white bread, or a bread like challah or brioche for this pudding, as a whole grain bread will add enough of its own flavor that the dessert will loose some of its cheesecake essence (although it will still be rich and tasty).
Since this is a fairly plain bread pudding, I would serve it with a few spoonfuls of cream anglaise or other custard sauce, or pair it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. If you opt for the ice cream route, serve the bread pudding warm. Otherwise, it is good both warmed and at room temperature.
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I have never had a problem with having leftover bread pudding and being at a loss for what to do with it. I eat it – plain and simple. That being said, you can never have too many ideas to make eating those leftovers a little bit more interesting, even when you start off with bread pudding that is perfectly good in its leftover state to begin with.
Bread pudding is bread soaked in a custard mixture and baked. French toast is bread soaked in a custard mixture and fried. See the similarities? Bread pudding can be reheated in the microwave in seconds and still be delicious. Using it as the base for a french toast-type of dish is just amazing.
The process here is simple: heat up some butter in a large frying pan or on a skillet, then lay slices of chilled bread pudding into the pan. Fry the slices, turning once, until they are golden on both sides and are heated through. The bread pudding comes out slightly crispy on the surface, and soft in the center. I used eggnog bread pudding, of course, and since I baked it in a loaf pan it was very easy to slice. If you bake yours in a casserole dish, you shouldn’t have any problems creating thin (approx 1/2-inch thick) slices, but they might be a slightly different shape than those from a loaf-style bread pudding.
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