If you want an impressive but easy dessert, this is it! You can make it with store bought French bread, Challah or Brioche. One of my next posts will be my brioche recipe, so if you are up to it, you could even make your own brioche and use the leftovers (assuming your family doesn't eat it all!) for this recipe - that makes it quite special and delightful but of course also a little more work intensive. In any case, whatever you use, I love this recipe. ❤️
It is truly the best Bread Pudding recipe I have ever made. My English-born husband agrees!
12 oz. day old French bread, Challah or Brioche (cut into 1" cubes)
1/4 cup butter
11/2 cups milk
5 eggs
11/4 cups sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cups fresh blueberries (or any other berries or chopped fresh fruit)
1 tbsp. Demerara sugar
Preheat oven to 325°F .
Arrange bread cubes to fill a buttered 2-qt. ceramic baking dish.
Heat milk and butter in a saucepan, stirring occasionally, over medium-high heat, until butter melts and mixture just comes to a boil.
Pour milk/butter mix over the bread; let stand 15 minutes.
Whisk together eggs, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl.
Stir in blueberries or chopped fruit.
Pour egg/fruit mix over the bread, then stir gently to combine evenly and not mash up your bread cubes. The top of the bread should be higher than any liquid that hasn't been soaked up yet; this will give you a really nice crunchy surface.
Sprinkle with Demerara sugar.
Bake until golden brown on top and a knife inserted comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes.
Let stand 10 minutes.
Serve with vanilla ice cream.
The brioche bread pudding is also a really nice breakfast eaten cold with a café au lait or a mug of steaming cappuccino.