The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook (364 page)

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

Bread pudding started out as a frugal way to transform stale, old loaves of bread into an appetizing dish. But contemporary versions of this humble dish vary from mushy, sweetened porridge to chewy, desiccated cousins of holiday stuffing. We wanted a refined bread pudding, with a moist, creamy (but not eggy) interior and a crisp top crust. The first step was choosing the best bread for the job. We chose challah for its rich flavor. We cut the bread into cubes, toasted them until lightly browned, and soaked the cubes with a batch of basic custard. Once the cubes were saturated, we transferred them to a baking dish and slid our pudding into a low-temperature oven to prevent curdling. The custard turned out creamy and smooth, but not as set as we’d have liked. Adding another egg or two helped firm it up, but tasters complained that the pudding tasted somewhat eggy. It turns out that eggy flavor comes from the sulfur compounds in egg whites. So we got rid of the whites and just used the yolks. We now had a luscious, silky custard. Brushing the surface with melted butter and sprinkling the dish with a mix of white and brown sugar prior to baking gave the pudding a crunchy, buttery, sugary crust.

SERVES 8 TO 10

Challah is an egg-enriched bread that can be found in most bakeries and supermarkets. If you cannot find challah, a firm high-quality sandwich bread such as Arnold Country Classics White or Pepperidge Farm Farmhouse Hearty White may be substituted. If desired, serve this pudding with
WHIPPED CREAM
or with Bourbon–Brown Sugar Sauce (recipe follows). To retain a crisp top crust when reheating leftovers, cut the bread pudding into squares and heat, uncovered, in a 450-degree oven until warmed through, 6 to 8 minutes.

1.
Adjust oven racks to middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 325 degrees. Combine 1 tablespoon granulated sugar and brown sugar in small bowl; set aside.

2.
Spread bread cubes in single layer on 2 rimmed baking sheets. Bake, tossing occasionally, until just dry, about 15 minutes, switching and rotating baking sheets halfway through baking. Let bread cubes cool for about 15 minutes; set aside 2 cups.

3.
Whisk egg yolks, remaining ³⁄
₄
cup granulated sugar, vanilla, and salt together in large bowl. Whisk in cream and milk until combined. Add remaining cooled bread cubes and toss to coat. Transfer mixture to 13 by 9-inch baking dish and let stand, occasionally pressing bread cubes into custard, until cubes are thoroughly saturated, about 30 minutes.

4.
Spread reserved bread cubes evenly over top of soaked bread mixture; gently press into custard. Brush melted butter over top of unsoaked bread cubes. Sprinkle brown sugar mixture evenly over top. Place bread pudding on baking sheet and bake on middle rack until custard has just set, pressing center of pudding with finger reveals no runny liquid, and center of pudding registers 170 degrees, 45 to 50 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and let cool until pudding is set and just warm, about 45 minutes. Serve.

MAKES ABOUT 1 CUP

Rum can be substituted for the bourbon.

Whisk sugar and cream together in small saucepan set over medium heat until combined. Continue to cook, whisking frequently, until mixture comes to boil, about 5 minutes. Whisk in butter and bring mixture back to boil, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and whisk in bourbon. Let cool until just warm; serve with bread pudding.

Add ²⁄
₃
cup chopped toasted pecans, 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, and 1 tablespoon softened butter to brown sugar mixture in step 1 and mix until crumbly. Add 1 tablespoon bourbon and 2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest to egg yolk mixture in step 3.

Combine ²⁄
₃
cup golden raisins and 5 teaspoons dark rum in small bowl. Microwave until hot, about 20 seconds; set aside to cool, about 15 minutes. Add ¹⁄
₈
teaspoon ground cinnamon to brown sugar mixture in step 1 and stir cooled raisin mixture into custard in step 3.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

If any food speaks of summer, the English dessert called summer pudding does. Ripe, fragrant, lightly sweetened berries are cooked gently to coax out their juices and then packed into a bowl lined with slices of bread. The berry juices soak and soften the bread to make it meld with the fruit. We set out to master this bright and flavorful summertime classic. Instead of lining the mold with bread and then filling it with berries, we opted to layer bread (cut out with a biscuit cutter) and berries together in ramekins; this way, the layers of bread on the inside would almost melt into the fruit. Combining the berries with sugar and lemon juice, and gently cooking the mixture for just five minutes, released just the right amount of juice and offset the tartness of the berries. We found that fresh bread became too gummy in the pudding, but bread dried in the oven had just the right consistency. We used potato bread; its even, tight-crumbed, tender texture and light sweetness was a perfect match for the berries (challah makes a good substitute). To ensure that the puddings would come together and hold their shape, we weighted and refrigerated them for at least eight hours.

See “ASSEMBLING INDIVIDUAL SUMMER BERRY PUDDINGS” illustrations that follow recipe.

See “ASSEMBLING A LARGE SUMMER BERRY PUDDING” illustrations that follow recipe.

SERVES 6

For this recipe, you will need six 6-ounce ramekins and a round cookie cutter of a slightly smaller diameter than the ramekins. If you don’t have the right size cutter, use a paring knife and the bottom of a ramekin (most ramekins taper toward the bottom) as a guide for trimming the rounds. If using challah, slice it about ¹⁄
₂
inch thick. Summer berry pudding can be made up to 24 hours before serving; held any longer, the berries begin to lose their freshness.
WHIPPED CREAM
is the perfect accompaniment.

1.
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 200 degrees. Place bread in single layer on rimmed baking sheet and bake until dry but not brittle, about 1 hour, flipping slices once and rotating baking sheet halfway through baking. Set aside to cool.

2.
Combine strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, and sugar in large saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until berries begin to release their juices and sugar has dissolved, about 5 minutes. Off heat, stir in lemon juice; cool to room temperature.

3.
Spray six 6-ounce ramekins with vegetable oil spray and place on rimmed baking sheet. Use cookie cutter to cut out 12 bread rounds that are slightly smaller in diameter than ramekins.

4.
Using slotted spoon, place ¹⁄
₄
cup fruit mixture in each ramekin. Lightly soak 1 bread round in fruit juice in saucepan and place on top of fruit in ramekin; repeat with 5 more bread rounds and remaining ramekins. Divide remaining fruit among ramekins, about ¹⁄
₂
cup per ramekin. Lightly soak 1 bread round in juice and place on top of fruit in ramekin (it should sit above lip of ramekin); repeat with remaining 5 bread rounds and remaining ramekins. Pour remaining fruit juice over bread and cover ramekins loosely with plastic wrap. Place second baking sheet on top of ramekins and weight it with heavy cans. Refrigerate puddings for at least 8 hours or up to 24 hours.

5.
Remove cans and baking sheet and uncover puddings. Loosen puddings by running paring knife around edge of each ramekin, unmold into individual bowls, and serve immediately.

SERVES 6 TO 8

You will need a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan for this recipe. Because there is no need to cut out rounds for this version, you will need only about 8 slices of bread, depending on their size.

Trim crusts from toasted bread and trim slices to fit in single layer in loaf pan (you will need about 2¹⁄
₂
slices per layer; there will be three layers). Spray 9 by 5-inch loaf pan with vegetable oil spray, line with plastic wrap, and place on rimmed baking sheet. Using slotted spoon, spread about 2 cups fruit mixture evenly over bottom of prepared pan. Lightly soak enough bread slices for 1 layer in fruit juice in saucepan and place on top of fruit. Repeat with 2 more layers of fruit and bread. Pour remaining fruit juice over bread and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Place second baking sheet on top of loaf pan and weight it with heavy cans. Refrigerate pudding as directed. When ready to serve, invert pudding onto serving platter, remove loaf pan and plastic, slice, and serve.