This traditional bread pudding recipe bakes up a giant batch to share. Cubes of brioche soak in a candy spiced cream, then bake in a water tub to create a easy custard texture. Serve with a beneficiant drizzle of home made bourbon sauce.

Desk of Contents

1. What’s bread pudding?
2. Bread choice
3. Dry the bread
4. Tempering the custard
5. Soak the bread
6. Bake in a water tub
7. Make a bourbon sauce
8. Methods to modify up the recipe
9. Storing and freezing
10. What to serve this with
11. Bread Pudding Recipe

My first chunk of bread pudding was in New Orleans at Commander’s Palace. When the nice and cozy plate hit the desk, I might instantly scent the spices and hints of oaky whisky within the sticky glaze. Let’s simply say they set the bar fairly excessive, however I’m comfortable to report that I intently recreated the expertise at residence.

The excellent news is that the recipe contains easy substances; bread, eggs, cream, sugar, and spices. You will have to organize and bake the custard base with care to ship a easy and creamy texture. I exploit a water tub to softly prepare dinner the egg filling, to nail the fitting consistency. Don’t fear, the method is straightforward, and I’ll present you my step-by-step methodology.

What’s bread pudding?

Bread pudding sometimes makes use of day-old bread and turns it right into a heat baked custard dessert. The bread soaks in an egg and cream combination with spices or different mix-ins like fruit or chocolate. It gently bakes to yield a velvety, souffle-like texture. You may make it in a big casserole pan or small ramekins for particular person parts to serve a number of friends.

Bread choice

For this recipe, you have to a 1 pound loaf of bread. I desire to make use of brioche, a barely candy egg bread with a dense crumb construction for extra chew and decadence. Challah is an effective substitute. French bread is one other nice choice and may have a lighter texture because it’s a lean yeast dough.

Dry the bread

To imitate utilizing day-old or stale bread, reduce the loaf into 1-inch items, then bake them in a 300-degree oven. This course of will gently dry extra moisture on the floor, just like making croutons. The dryness permits the candy custard to soak up into the crumb for optimum taste. This methodology additionally prevents the bread from immediately getting too soggy, and shedding its construction.

Tempering the custard

Bread pudding is a sort of baked custard, so to make sure a velvety texture, it is advisable warmth the eggs with the dairy and sugar gently. This course of additionally helps to totally dissolve the sugar granules earlier than it bakes for even dispersion.

Tempering the cool eggs with heat liquid creates a easy consistency throughout cooking and prevents the proteins from turning into lumpy curds. The cream combination heats to 120-degrees for light warming.

Soak the bread

To make sure that the bread absorbs the custard all the best way to the middle, let it soak till hydrated and mushy. This course of takes about half-hour. Don’t skip this step, or the pudding will style dry in components as a substitute of infusing collectively into easy and creamy slices.

Bake in a water tub

If you happen to place the bread pudding on the oven rack, the direct warmth will make the sides overly dry and the center too custardy. To create a good consistency all through, bake the dessert set inside a water tub. To make one, simply put the casserole dish inside a big roasting pan and pour in sizzling water till it reaches midway up the edges.

The steam generated within the oven will gently prepare dinner the egg combination, and stop sizzling spots. The result’s a decadent souffle-like texture. This method can be used for egg-based desserts like cheesecake to stop cracking and retaining moisture. 

Make a bourbon sauce

To make a standard bread pudding sauce, whip up a fast bourbon-infused glaze. I like so as to add brown sugar as a result of the molasses compliments the flavour of the barrel-aged whiskey. Melted butter, sugar, and eggs gently warmth collectively till the proteins thicken and coat a spoon. It’s important to maintain the butter and sugar combination beneath 135ºF (57ºC) earlier than including within the egg. 

The egg will coagulate at temperatures of 144ºF (62.2C) and above, so it’s good to offer a buffer. As soon as it’s blended with the sugars and butter, it would forestall curds from forming because it cooks and thickens. The alcohol and vanilla are added on the very finish, which retains it daring and intense. Slightly little bit of salt enhances the caramel flavors within the sauce. Be certain that so as to add it heat on high of the pudding.

Methods to modify up the recipe

Storing and freezing

Fully cool the bread pudding, then retailer leftovers in an hermetic container within the fridge for as much as 5 days. Particular person items might be tightly wrapped in plastic and saved in a resealable bag within the freezer for as much as one month. Defrost earlier than reheating.

What to serve this with