Basic Bread Pudding Recipe

Been a little while, hasn't it? Sorry about that, life has just gotten in the way the last few months. Long story short, I'm a full time student again in addition to working full time. But I think I'm in a good position to get back to blogging (and crafting) regularly again. To kick things off, I have a delightful recipe that I love to make in the fall: bread pudding.

For me, bread pudding is always a fall dish, I rarely make it any other time of the year. My first experience with them was when I made a pumpkin bread pudding, but sometimes you really crave the basics. This recipe is easy to do and you don't need anything special to do it. You probably have all the necessary ingredients on hand already.

What You'll Need:

5-6 cups stale bread, cubed
4 cups milk
3 eggs, beaten in a small bowl
1/2 a stick of butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
2 Tbsp vanilla (yes, tablespoons, it's most of the flavor)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1/8 tsp nutmeg

The Process:
Preheat your oven to 375°F. In medium heat in a large pot, combine the milk, butter, sugars, vanilla, and spices. Heat until sugar is dissolved, butter is melted, and spices are well incorporated about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat.

Take a 1/2 cup of your pudding mixture and slowly pour it into the bowl with the beaten eggs, whisking the entire time. Repeat once more. Then add the whole mixture back into the pot and mix well. This tempers the eggs so you can add them into the hot liquid without ruining the texture. It's a cool biology thing involving denaturing proteins, but basically you just don't want the heat from the liquid to cook the eggs. Same principle applies when making custards, too.

Put your cubed bread into a 9x13 or equivalent baking dish. Pour the whole pot over the bread, letting it soak in for a few minutes. Then put into the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes, until set. The top should be a little brown.

It's best to eat it the same day or the day after you make it. Bread pudding doesn't keep too well. You can refrigerate leftovers overnight and heat them up in the microwave.

Now, if you have fresh bread that you'd like to turn into bread pudding, you absolutely can. I like to cube it up, put it on a baking sheet, and bake it on a low heat, 200-250 degrees, for 15 minutes, checking it and stirring halfway through. Dry but not hard is the key here. Let it cool a few minutes and then it's ready to use.

Amaretto Pound Cake Perfection

While at my Trader Joe's recently, I came across this interesting carton of shelf stable whipping cream. I always seem to want whipping cream, but rarely have it on hand. For under $2, I thought it was worth giving it a try. But then, like magic, all my whipping cream needs vanished. I started stumbling around the internet, looking for interesting and creative uses of whipping cream.

Instead, I accidentally came across this pound cake recipe that says it was a favorite of Elvis Presley's and it looked too good not to try. People say a lot of things about famous people like that, but after having tasted it? Total truth, my friends. It must be. This cake is too good to be a lie.

I made a few small modifications to the recipe and it turned out beautifully. The originally recipe called for 7 eggs and that just seemed like far too many. Plus, I only had 6 on hand the first time I made it. The texture turned out great anyway, so I've been sticking with 6. I also added some amaretto, because all baked goods are better with a little booze.

What You'll Need:
3 cups sugar
2 sticks of butter, softened
6 eggs
3 cups cake flour, sifted OR make the DIY cake flour (see below)
1 pint whipping heavy cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup amaretto liquor (optional, but amazing)

DIY Cake Flour:
You'll need all-purpose flour, cornstarch, two medium bowls, and a mesh strainer (or flour sifter)

Take out a 1 cup measuring cup. Put two tablespoons of cornstarch in the measuring cup. Add all-purpose flour on top until the measuring cup is full. Dump it out into a bowl. Repeat twice and you'll have the correct amount of flour for this recipe. Put your strainer over the second bowl, and slowly add the flour/cornstarch mixture to the strainer as you shake it back and forth, which both sifts the flour and mixes the flour and cornstarch together. And volià! An excellent cake flour substitute.

Baked Apple Crisp for Two

In an effort not to turn orange, I've put aside the pumpkin this week. I couldn't just ditch all the fall goodies, though. I had some apples laying around and didn't want to do anything too complicated with them. A nice apple bake fit the bill perfectly.

I love the oatmeal topping on these so much. It goes so spectacularly with the apples and cinnamon. You could easily double the recipe to serve a few more people, but for just Hubs and I, it's sometimes nice to make just two servings and not have any leftovers.

Baked Apple Crisp for Two
makes 2 servings, 5 Points+ per serving

What You'll Need:
1 medium/large firm apple (granny smith, etc)
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tbs brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
dash of cloves
dash of nutmeg

For Topping:
1 tbs brown sugar
1/4 cup old fashioned oats
2 tbs butter, room temp

The Process:
   Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Peel, core, and dice the apple. Mix apples in a bowl with lemon juice, sugar, and spices until well combined. Divide between two small oven safe bowls. Mix the topping ingredients together with a fork and put on top of apples. Cover and bake for 30 minutes until apples are tender.

For an extra decadent treat, top with a little whipped cream or serve with some vanilla icecream.

Classic Pumpkin Pie

I couldn't possibly go through 14 cups of pumpkin puree without making at least one pumpkin pie. This recipe is adapted from the one my father made when I was growing up. I actually haven't made it myself since I was in college. There's usually so much when I head to my parents' house for the holidays that I haven't felt the urge to make my own.

In fact, it turns out that I probably haven't made any pies since college- because I don't have a pie pan! I had to use my cake round for this pie. I should probably rectify this egregious error since I'm in charge of Thanksgiving this year.

Classic Pumpkin Pie
makes 8 slices, 8 Points+ per slice

What You'll Need:
   1, 9" pie crust
   1, 15oz can (or 2 cups) pumpkin puree
   2 eggs
   1, 14oz can sweetened, condensed milk
   1 tsp cinnamon
   1/2 tsp ginger
   1/2 tsp nutmeg
   1/4 tsp all-spice

The Process:
   Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line pie pan with crust. Mix all the filling ingredients together and pour into pie shell. Bake 45-60 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. Chill before serving, and top with whipped cream.

Civil War Era Chocolate Pudding

 Today is going to start a new little segment called Test Kitchen Tuesday. I talk quite a bit about recipes I've had to work on several times to get right, but I only post the final recipe. I thought it might be interesting to talk about the process I go through while working things out. In the spirit of that, I decided to start with a recipe that immediately needed some changes.

A dear friend of mine works at a Civil War museum and each week they post a recipe from the period. This past week's sounded not only delicious, but also something I could readily make. It was a baked chocolate pudding. Our great-great-grandmothers weren't quite the sticklers we are for measurements, so at the very least I needed to translate the ingredients into modern measurements.

 The recipe I worked with was as follows:

Have the best and strongest American chocolate or cocoa. Baker’s prepared cocoa will be found excellent for all chocolate purposes; better indeed than anything else, as it is pure, and without any adulteration of animal fat, being also very strong, and communicating a high flavor. Of this, scrape down, very fine, two ounces or more. Add to it a tea-spoonful of mixed spice, namely, powdered nutmeg and cinnamon. Put it into a very clean sauce-pan, and pour on a quart of rich milk, stirring it well. Set it over the fire, or on hot coals; cover it; and let it come to a boil. Then remove the lid; stir up the chocolate from the bottom, and press out all lumps. Then return it to the fire, and when thoroughly dissolved and very smooth, it is done. Next stir in, gradually, while the chocolate is still boiling-hot, a quarter of a pound or more of powdered loaf-sugar. If you use such white sugar as is bought ready powdered, you must have near half a pound, as that sugar has very little strength, being now adulterated with ground starch. When the chocolate is well sweetened, set it away to cool. Beat eight eggs very light, and pour them through a strainer into the pan of chocolate, when it is quite cold. Stir the whole very hard. Then put it into the oven, and bake it well. Try it when you think it done, with a twig from a broom. If on putting the twig into the middle of the pudding, and sticking it quite down to the bottom, the twig comes out clean, and with nothing clammy adhering to it, the pudding is then sufficiently baked. It should be eaten cold. Sift white sugar thickly over it before it goes to the table. It will be found very nice.
This pudding will bake best by sitting the pan in a dutch oven half-filled with boiling water.

From: Leslie, Eliza. Miss Leslie's Lady's New Receipt-book: A Useful Guide for Large or Small Families : Containing Directions for Cooking, Preserving, Pickling. Philadelphia: A. Hart, Late Carey & Hart, 1850. Pg. 127-128

 The first step I took was to write out each of the ingredients in a list, as we do now, and translate their quantities to measurements we use now. I didn't know, without looking it up, that 1lb of sugar is equal to two cups. So, a quarter pound of sugar is half a cup. At this stage, I also made the executive decision to add a little vanilla to the recipe.

Sweet Potato Pudding

Against my better judgment, I used the oven tonight and, as expected, it heated up the whole apartment. But, I have to say it was entirely worth it for this lovely little dessert. Last trip I made to the store, I picked up some sweet potatoes and was surprised to find three distinct varieties in addition to a pile of "yams". 

These "yams" looked like the sweet potatoes I always ate as a kid, so I picked them up and they were exactly what I wanted. It got me to thinking, what exactly is a yam? Is it a sweet potato? Or perhaps the other way around? Turns out, that no, yams and sweet potatoes are not the same. Who knew?

They're not in the same family, and there isn't even a species of yam native to the US. Most grocery stores sell "yams" that are really sweet potatoes, real yams are generally only found in international markets. In the US, the term "yam" came into use for sweet potatoes from slaves, because it was similar to the actual yam they knew in Africa. Vernacular can be a trickster like that.

Forgive my linguistic indulgence, I find that sort of thing fascinating- but now back to the pudding. While doing my sweet potato vs. yam research, I came across a fabulous sounding recipe on this site that discusses the differences and includes a few recipes.

Sweet Potato Pudding
Adapted from Tennessee Old Maid’s Sweet Potato Pudding from Classic Home Desserts

What You'll Need:
1/2 stick butter, room temp
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground clove
2 1/2 cups grated raw peeled sweet potato (about two medium potatoes)
1 1/2 cup milk

Vegan Chocolate Mousse Pie

Last weekend, Hubby and I went to a really great vegetarian place called the Vegetable Garden. We had a vegan orange chocolate mousse pie that was so slamming words cannot describe. It was probably the best pie I've eaten in my life. The look, the taste, the texture... I don't even like the orange/chocolate combination that much.

I wanted to recreate that pie, without the orange. Turns out, there are about a thousand recipes for it out there. They are all pretty similar- variations on chocolate and tofu. That's what I expected since the restaurant lists out the ingredients for it- tofu, dairy-free chocolate chips, cane sugar, and sea salt. This was my first attempt at it, and I am pleased with how it came out, but it wasn't quite that pie. The search continues!

Vegan Chocolate Mousse Pie
Adapted from Vegan Epicurean

What You'll Need:
6 oz. vegan chocolate
12 oz. silken tofu
1/2 cup sweetener- I used Sugar in the Raw but maple syrup might be a good choice, too.
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 graham cracker crust (I used a chocolate one I found at Whole Foods)

Mimi's Sugar Cookies

These cookies are special because unlike the vast majority of things I make that come to me from the internet, this recipe is from my family. Mimi was my great-great-grandmother, on my father's side. She died a week before her 100th birthday in 1983, so I never had the opportunity to meet her. By all accounts, though, she was quite a remarkable individual.

However, my uncle recently unearthed her sugar cookie recipe and I thought it might be nice to share them since I am making them later today. As trendy as making nontraditional things seems to be nowadays (which I love), I still think everyone can use a solid sugar cookie dough. I haven't changed the recipe at all, it is exactly as it appears when she wrote it down.

Mimi's Sugar Cookies

1 cup butter
1½ cups sugar
2 well beaten eggs
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1½ teaspoons vanilla

Mix the butter, sugar, and eggs with 3 cups of sifted flour. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and 1½ teaspoons of vanilla. Chill well and roll thin. Sprinkle with sugar and bake at 350 for about 8 minutes.

I hope you all have a lovely new year's eve! Best of luck in 2012 to you!

So Yummy Vanilla Bean Crème Brûlée

When Hubby-to-be and I were first dating, we went to one of his favorite restaurants and their dessert special that night was vanilla bean crème brûlée. From that first bite, he and I both have been smitten with this delight. Unlike the Pumpkin Bread Pudding from a few days ago, crème brûlée can't be made on a whim unless you all ready have the necessary tools. I didn't- until now.

Yum.

Hubby-to-be's wonderful mother sent us our wedding gifts early and to my indescribable joy, a set of ramekins and a cooking torch were among the gifts. It just so happens that also yesterday, Hubby-to-be was expecting a call about a job. I've been confident he would receive an offer, so I thought a crème brûlée would be a nice way to celebrate. And even if he didn't get it, there are worse things to cry over than tasty custard (but he did get it, it turns out).

Pumpkin Bread Pudding

This recipe for Pumpkin-Bourbon Bread Pudding popped up on my blogroll and I knew it had to be made. The best part? I already had all of the ingredients on hand! Now if that isn't a recipe that demands being made that instant, I don't know what is. You might be thinking that bread pudding isn't for you, but you'd be wrong. Try this and you'll be sold, just like I was.

I had never made a bread pudding before, so I didn't really stray from the given recipe. I simply left out the bourbon because I didn't have any. It turned out really well, so well that Hubby-to-be got into it before I could take a picture. It's so incredibly easy to make that anyone can do it.

This was all that was left after Hubby-to-be came home.

Pumpkin Bread Pudding
from The Baker Chick

What You'll Need:

1 1/2 cups whole milk
1 cup canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix)
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs plus 1 egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
Pinch of ground cloves

5 cups cubed crusty bread (like a baguette)
3/4 stick unsalted butter, melted

The Process:

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Combine all ingredients except butter and bread in a bowl and whisk together. In a separate and larger bowl, toss the bread cubes with butter until coated. Then pour the custard mixture over the bread and mix. Let it sit to soak it up for a few minutes. Then bake for 25-30 minutes, until the custard has set.

Then devour.

Home Made Vanilla Extract

Fall has officially begun (according to the unseasonably cool weather I've had lately) and there is nothing so lovely as baking in the fall. Something that is critically important to a plethora of my favorite recipes is vanilla. I love cooking with vanilla beans, but they're not always right for baked goods.

For those fall favorites, you really need vanilla extract. Unfortunately, the fake stuff is, well, fake and the good stuff is frankly quite expensive. But I have a good solution for you- making your own! It's easy, inexpensive, and it tastes great (in your baked goods).

All you need is: vanilla beans, vodka, and a glass container. No joke. Well, those things and a good, sharp knife. I prefer to use amber glass bottles because I like the look, but you can use whatever glass bottle you like as long as it has a tight fitting cap.

What You'll Need:

3 vanilla beans
1 cup vodka (100 proof is ideal)
Glass container

The Process:

Slice your vanilla beans in half lengthwise. Put them into your bottle, cutting them in half if necessary to fit. Pour in your vodka and cap the bottle. Now put on your patient pants and wait. Give it a good shake once a week for about 2 months. Ideally, it should be stored in a dark place unless you used an amber glass bottle (sunlight is not good for it). After 2 months, it is ready to use and will last you for years if you top it off with a little more vodka after each use.

Vodka is typically used because it does not have a flavor that interferes with the flavor of the beans. However, you could use a rum if you want to have a little extra depth to your extract. I have a bottle of each, because vanilla rum extract (as I've dubbed it) doesn't work for all baked goods, but is really good in many cakes.

Fool-Proof Creamy Rice Pudding

I love a good creamy rice pudding almost as much as I love Hubby-to-be (sorry, honey). There's just something about a wonderful rice pudding that just stops me in my tracks. This one puts me in the running against the one that his mother makes, and that's some steep competition.

I don't know for sure, but I believe she uses eggs in her recipe. I do not. There's two reasons for this: I don't think they're necessary for a good, creamy texture and when I was working out the recipe, I didn't actually have any eggs on hand. Thus, this recipe came to be. Necessity is the mother of invention after all.

Creamy Rice Pudding
makes 8 servings

What You'll Need:

1 cup uncooked rice (not instant rice)
2 3/4 cups milk
1/2 stick salted butter
2 vanilla beans (or 1 Tbs vanilla extract)
1 stick of cinnamon or 1 Tbs ground
1/2 cup sugar (more or less depending on the size of your sweet tooth)
1 pint cream
Pinch of salt

The Only Fruit Dip You Will Ever Need

I grew up with this fruit dip at all our summer parties. The local grocery store made it themselves and sold it. I have been known to just eat it with a spoon, it's that wonderful. It's a cream cheesey delight. You can have it with cantaloupe, honeydew, grapes, blueberries, and strawberries (my personal favorite) or honestly any fruit that strikes your fancy. It's great for party trays, which is why I whipped this dip up this weekend. Some friends were having a get together and I knew this is what I needed to bring (along with a nice bottle of Chardonnay).

It is a quick, easy, and nearly foolproof. I say nearly, because I made the one and only critical error when I made it this weekend: I didn't soften the cream cheese. It is nearly impossible to get it completely smooth without doing that first, so don't skip it!

What you'll need:

1, 8 oz package cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup milk or half and half (I had some left over half and half on hand, so I used that)
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
Whatever fruit makes your heart sing