Monday, October 6, 2014

Cookbook Countdown -- Bourbon Bread Pudding


This will be cookbook  #67!
on my slow, very slow countdown  of  my own
personal cookbook shelf.

I will be linking up to 

I am also very excited to have found:


I need all the help I can get to keep on my cookbook challenge.



I really love  this cookbook.  It has gorgeous pictures and it really full of 
old-fashioned, from scratch, goodness.
They have a recipe for homemade 'snowballs'... the pink coconut covered chocolate cakes with cream in the middle that we all used to buy from Hostess?   Well, they make homemade ones that look great!



But, I decided to make their bourbon bread pudding.
I have no excuse really.
I don't even like bread pudding.
I think it's weird to put a bunch of old stale bread into a custard and eat it.
It's all mushy and.... mushy.
I don't like it.

Until.... I tasted this one.



And I thought I went to heaven.
Seriously.

It could have been the bourbon glaze of course, but truly it was warm golden, goodness in my mouth.

I had only had cold bread pudding in the past,  but this says, 'best served warm', so I did and it was---so. damn . darn good.
okay, so it was kind of mushy still, but it was soft and warm and sweet and buttery, and vanilla-y and bourbon-y.
Even the Handyman who hates bread pudding liked this bread pudding.

If I owned a soup restaurant called "Ahhhh---some soups", which served only soups and desserts, I would put this on my chalkboard menu.  I wouldn't have a regular printed menu--because I would be so popular I could make whatever I wanted that day and people wouldn't care and they would come for miles around---and they would LOVE IT when I had bourbon bread pudding on the menu.

Yes, I'm being silly, but it was that good.



Ingredients

  • For the Pudding
  • 1 1/2 pounds ciabatta, brioche, or challah, cut into 2-inch cubes (9 cups)
  • 4 cups half-and-half
  • 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
  • 1 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 3 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
  • 5 large eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 cup golden raisins
  • For the Bourbon Glaze
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons bourbon
  • 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream

Procedures

  1. 1
    Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
  2. 2
    To make the pudding: Put the bread in a large mixing bowl and pour the half-and-half over it, tossing it gently to soak the bread. Let sit at room temperature while you prepare the custard.
  3. 3
    In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Remove from the heat, add the brown sugar, granulated sugar, and vanilla, and stir until well combined and smooth.
  4. 4
    In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, then add the butter-sugar mixture, stirring until well combined and smooth. Pour the custard mixture over the bread, tossing gently to incorporate the custard and half-and-half mixture until well combined.
  5. 5
    Pour the bread mixture into the prepared baking dish and spread it evenly. Sprinkle the raisins over the top and gently work them into the pudding; make sure the liquid covers the bread. Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and bake for 55 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until the bread pudding is golden brown. Set the pudding aside while you prepare the glaze.
  6. 6
    To make the bourbon glaze: Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Remove from the heat and add the bourbon and confectioners’ sugar, stirring until incorporated. Add the cream and mix until smooth.
  7. 7
    Pour the glaze over the top of the bread pudding and let it sit for 15 minutes before serving. The bread pudding is best served warm, but it can be refrigerated, tightly covered, for up to 4 days.


8 comments:

Susan Lindquist said...

Mmmmmmmmmm! Booze and sugar! What could be better ?!? Ihave to congratulate you on this cook book challenge! What a feat!

Michelle B said...

Debbie-I love it when you are silly and I'm laughing my butt off over here. So much that my husband just asked me "what's so funny?" Bread pudding is weird when you think about it. Very weird. It is absolutely hilarious (and totally something I would do) that you made bread pudding when you both don't like it!

I'm with you--like it better warm. Hey, and if there's booze involved the rest doesn't really matter. Haha.

Tina said...

What a creation! I love your post, you are always humorous :-) but I am digging this bread pudding even more.
We happen to have some bourbon. Must get cracking.

kitchen flavours said...

Hi Debbie,
I have this book too and love the recipes. Already tried some of the recipes and like them all, especially their coconut macaroons.
I'm with you when it comes to bread pudding, I have never taken a liking to it. My kids love bread pudding though. Have seen this recipe and was tempted to make this before, but somehow to me it is still "bread pudding"! Seeing that how much you like this recipe, I should really give it a try one of these days. Especially since it has bourbon! :)
Thanks for linking with CYB!

Trish @ Love, Laughter, Insanity said...

I'm not a fan of bread pudding either (you're so right about the mushy mush!) but that glaze looks DELICIOUS!!!

Thanks for linking up with Cook it Up! I actually linked you up to today's post since the linky only goes up once a month and I didn't want people to miss you. :)

And wow you have a lot of cookbooks!!

Laurie C said...

I never thought I liked bread pudding either until I had it homemade (by my husband)! The bourbon twist sounds delicious. Whenever I see the cover of that cookbook, it makes me smile, too.

Mary R. said...

This looks delicious! I am a huge fan of bread pudding and make it fairly often. It really shouldn't be mushy. Soft and moist yes, but not mushy. I definitely need to check out this book.

Katherine P said...

I have this book but had kind of forgotten about it! Thanks for the reminder. The bread pudding looks absolutely amazing and like you I'm not in love with bread pudding. If you haven't made them yet I highly recommend the chocolate chip cookies. I think I bought the book just for that recipe!

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