Boozy Bread Pudding

If you like the flavour of the boozy rum-soaked, aged dried fruits that are used to make traditional Christmas cake/black cake/Christmas pudding, but find the cake itself too intense, then try this bread pudding. You’ll find the flavour you crave but none of the heaviness of the cake/pudding.

The key to this recipe and any good bread pudding is to ensure that the bread soaks for an adequate amount of time in the custard so that when baked, the pudding is not dry.

Because we always have these fruits curing all year round, this pudding can be made any time of the year.

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT

1 (8 x 8-inch square or round pan), buttered

INGREDIENTS

For custard:

• 6 eggs room temperature
• 1 ¼ cups whole milk
• 2 cups canned evaporated milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla essence
• A pinch of fine table salt
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 cup sugar (brown or white)
• 4 tablespoons melted butter (unsalted)

For pudding:

• 6 regular tennis rolls, cubed or 6 heaped cups cubed bread
• 1 cup rum-soaked Christmas fruits

DIRECTIONS

For custard:

1. Whisk together all the ingredients in a large bowl.

For pudding:

2. Add the cubed bread to the custard and keep pressing on the bread until immersed in the liquid.
3. Cover the bowl or transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate overnight.
4. Bring the custard-bread mixture to room temperature before baking.
5. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

6. Gently stir rum fruits into the pudding just before adding it to the buttered dish/pan. Transfer to oven and bake for 1 hour or until a skewer or knife inserted comes out clean.
7. Remove pan/dish from oven and place on wire rack to cool.
8. Serve warm or at room temperature.

NOTE

• Whole wheat bread/rolls can be used in place of those made with white flour, however, you will need to increase the liquid ingredients. Use an extra cup evaporated milk and 1 and extra egg to the custard mixture.