Bread Pudding with Bourbon Sauce

Today is the brother's birthday, and because I'm broke I said I would bake a cake. Unfortunately, the house in colorado has all the cake pans and such... so bread pudding is the runner up. 

This is dairy filled to the max, rich, creamy, and delicious. But it's also the kind of thing you'll want to exercise the whole next day to have seconds. Regardless, it's my favorite dessert, and I thought I'd share. It's not too difficult, but is for the more

 "seasoned" foodie. I also made a Creme Anglais with this recipe, and substituted a 10 yr old whisky instead of bourbon (didn't have any in the pantry)... still tastes incredibly delicious. 

If you feel it's too rich, you can sub more whole milk for the cream, but I would still put some of the cream in, it helps with the consistency and sweetness. You can also play around with the bread. I've tried it with donuts and french bread, and both are delicious. so good. Krispy Kreme has never been a better ingredient. 

These recipes are ones my mother has used for years, probably out of a Bon Apetit. This is definitely a delicious, romantic dessert that's sure to please anyone. And it's not at all like a pudding. 

Recipe:

4 large eggs

1 cup whole milk

1 cup whipping cream

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

pinch of salt

4 cups cinnamon raisin bread (day old makes it even better), cut into 1/2-1 inch pieces

1/2 cup toasted pecans, chopped

butter an 8-inch baking dish. whisk in the first 6 ingredients into a medium sized bowl. mix the bread and pecans together and place into the baking dish. pour the wet mixture over the the bread and let it soak for 5 minutes. push the bread into the custard-like liquid, and chill for 2 hours. Occasionally, push the bread into the liquid throughout that time, two or three times. 

preheat oven to 375 degree. Now for the water bath (it's not too hard.) Boil 1-2 cups of water, depending on how deep your baking sheet is. Put the bread pudding on a baking pan, add the hot water around. It's best to do this in the oven, with the pan and dish set up already instead of having to wobble the whole watery mess to the oven. Bake until the bread has puffed up and it's golden brown and slightly crispy. About 50 minutes. Let it cool for a few minutes, but serve warm. Can also be made a day ahead, as I think it's fabulous the next day. (serves 6)

Now for the 2 sauces I made.... 

Whisky Sauce: 

1/2 stick unsalted butter (1/4 cup)

1/2 cup sugar

3 Tbps. whipping cream

4 Tbps. whisky

pinch of salt

melt the butter in a small sauce pan on medium heat. slowly whisk in the remaining ingredients. simmer until thickened, and all the sugar is dissolved. cool slightly. can also be made ahead of time, and served warm with the bread pudding. Add more alcohol if you want, as it's the main taste in the sauce. (makes about 1/2 cup)

finally, the best sauce ever... 

Creme Anglaise:

6 large egg yolks

2/3 cup sugar 

2 cup whipping cream 

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

whisk egg yolks and sugar together. place the whipping cream and vanilla bean in a small sauce pan, bring to boil and remove at boiling point. Temper the eggs with a small amount of cream (1/2 to start, gradually add more and

 more. If you add all the hot cream at once, it will cook the eggs instead of mix with them.) Gradually mix the cream mixture into the eggs and return to saucepan. On low heat, keep stirring the mixture until it's thickened. You want it to coat the back of a spoon and leave a path if you run your finger across it. Never boil, and make sure you keep stirring it, especially at the bottom. You don't want the heat to cook the eggs. (about 5-10 minutes) Remove/Strain out the vanilla bean, cover and refrigerate until cold. Can also be made ahead. (Makes about 2 cups of sauce)

I put the creme anglaise on the bottom and poured a little of the whisky sauce overtop. The bread still soaks up lots of the deliciousness, and is incredibly decadent. 

Goat Cheese Stuffed Sweet Peppers

I couldn't help it... these delicious little sweet peppers were calling my name, and I always feel better after cooking something yummy. I could be vegan if it weren't for my love of cheese, and this luscious herb goat cheese satiates that craving very well. If you can't find these smaller sweet peppers, the regular large ones can be used, just quarter or halve them and fill with the goat cheese. 

Ingredients:

5-6 mini sweet peppers (bell peppers also work)

4 ounces herb goat cheese (in the grocery they've got small and large logs. I used the small.)

Heat the goat cheese for 15-20 seconds, just enough to soften. (It'll make spooning it into the peppers much easier). Cut the tops off the peppers and remove all the seeds. Spoon in the goat cheese. Make a little foil pouch for the little yummies, and in a 400 degree oven, roast for 30-35 minutes. You want the peppers to be soft and the skin on the bottle to start to get black/brown. This is good, and not burnt. (Typically when roasting whole bell peppers, you let the skin get completely black everywhere and peel it off. No peeling needed for this, as it won't get totally black and come off. just little bits.)

As you can see, the goat cheese will melt out during the roasting. No problem. I took a butter knife and just scooped it back into the peppers, and it stayed there nicely.

You could stuff them after roasting, but it's a little more difficult. I'm going to try this method wednesday night. 

I'll update this probably more frequently than once a week, but when school kicks in I make no promises. 

grilled orange and roasted garlic shrimp

grilled shrimp with orange and roasted garlic marinade. 

this was delicious! so good. the orange and cilantro keep the flavors fresh and light, and the roasted garlic and serrano chili give some depth. Accompanied with some miniature roasted sweet peppers and some delicious fresh yellow sweet corn. 

Recipe: 

1/2 pound fresh, local shrimp (peeled and without tails)

1 Serrano Chili (more or less for your heat tastes) chopped.

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

2 cups orange juice

1 head of garlic

4 Tbs. olive oil

2 tsp. of lime juice

Directions: With the garlic clove, cut the top off and put in foil topped with half the olive oil. Place in a 400 degree oven for 40 minutes, or place on a high grill for 30-40 minutes (with the grill closed). In a small sauce pan, heat the orange juice on low-medium heat, reducing it to 3/4 cup. Chill when reduced. (I used an ice bath and freezer combo for speedy cooling. Can also be made ahead.) 

Once the garlic is roasted and orange reduction is cooled, take the cloves and mix them together with the cilantro, chili, lime juice, and remaining olive oil. Marinate for at least 30 minutes. 

Then, skewer and grill for about 3-4 minutes a side, depending on how fat your shrimp are. Mine were small. 

For the peppers, I just made a foil pouch and grilled the pouch for 15 minutes. They came out tender, flavorful, and delicious. 

I'll be posting something delicious and new once a week. I love cooking, food, feeding people, and creating new and unique dishes. The most meat I'll ever post is fish. Otherwise, this will be a vegetarian food blog. 

love. the. food.