I had one of these little toy electric ovens back at the end of the Forties -- before litigation took the fun out of toys. No wimpy light bulb cooking and packaged mixes here. This baby came with metal pots and pans and a recipe booklet. It plugged in and heated up like nobody's business. I was about six and it was my favorite toy. I could make bread pudding all by myself -- buttered white bread, milk and sugar and eggs and raisins -- into the Little Chef and, voila, kitchen magic!
I suspect this was the beginning of a lifetime of cooking. . . and eating
It's been a long time since I made bread pudding and I thought I'd give it a go once again -- with a sophisticated twist. We had the end of a loaf of delicious chocolate/cardamon bread that Claui had given us for Christmas that I thought might be a good candidate for an updated bread pudding.
INGREDIENTS:
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6 slices day-old bread
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup dried cranberries
4 eggs, beaten
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2 cups milk
1/2 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon dark rum
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DIRECTIONS:
| Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). | |
| Break bread into small pieces into an 8 inch square baking pan. Drizzle melted butter or margarine over bread. Sprinkle with dried cranberries. | |
| In a medium mixing bowl, combine eggs, milk, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla. Beat until well mixed. Pour over bread, and lightly push down with a fork until bread is covered and soaking up the egg mixture. | |
| Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until the top springs back when lightly tapped. |
Super easy and really delicious hot. Not bad cold the next day.
Now I'm thinking of other variations -- maybe I need to bake some pumpkin bread to try in this recipe. Pecans would have been nice for an added crunch . . . What about a savory bread pudding made with rye and/or pumpernickel? And where's the recipe for the savory French bread, wild mushroom pudding I made some Christmas past?
This could turn into an obsession . . .
