blissful eats with tina jeffers: Pumpkin bread pudding

I wanted to share a recipe this week that would make a good addition to your Thanksgiving table.  This is a super simple dessert or decadent breakfast dish that you can have ready to pop in the oven in no time.  I served it up with a generous drizzle of salted caramel sauce but it would also make a great brunch dish as is.  

We have a hard time with Thanksgiving in our house for two reasons, we have a really small family and no one really likes traditional fare except for me.  This year my son has requested that we have a fried chicken and biscuit kind of celebration so to make him happy we are going to skip the turkey and try my hand at deep-frying.  As important as food traditions are for all of us to observe during the holidays it’s really about spending time with those we love so we’ll have a great holiday no matter what graces our table when it comes time for dinner.  Have a great holiday, eat with abandon and enjoy your familes!

Pumpkin bread pudding

Ingredients:

for the bread pudding:

1 ½ cups whole milk

1 cup canned pumpkin

½ cup maple syrup

2 large eggs plus 1 yolk

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

pinch of ground cloves

5 cups day-old challah or brioche

1/3 cup toasted hazelnuts

for the salted caramel sauce:

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons light corn syrup

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon Fleur de Sel

1/4 cup sour cream 

Method:

For the pumpkin bread pudding:

Whisk together pumpkin, cream, milk, maple syrup, eggs, yolk, salt, and spices in a bowl.

Toss bread cubes with the pumpkin mixture and toss to coat. Transfer to an ungreased 8-inch square baking dish and bake until custard is set, 25 to 30 minutes.  Serve with a drizzle of salted caramel sauce and a sprinkle of chopped hazelnuts.

for the salted caramel sauce:

Combine the sugar and corn syrup with 1/4 cup of water in a medium saucepan, stirring carefully so as not to splash the sides of the pan. Cook over high heat until an instant-read thermometer reads 350F or until the mixture is dark amber in color, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from the heat, and slowly add the cream, and then the Fleur de Sel. Whisk in the sour cream and set aside to cool.