I wanted to make something special to celebrate a friend’s last day of work before moving to the mainland, and I wanted to use up the leftover sourdough bread in my fridge. (Yes, we keep bread in the fridge in beautiful, humid Hawaii. Oh, you were asking about leftover sourdough bread? Yes, that is a real thing – especially when you’re on a diet like I am). So I knew that leftover bread + dessert equaled bread pudding, but I had no idea what a treat I was in for with the Blueberry Bread Pudding on page 369 of Aloha Days Hula Nights, in the Desserts – Puddings section.
Oh. My. Goodness. This was out-of-this-world delicious. I love sourdough bread, but I had no idea it could be elevated to such heights with cream, blueberries, and chocolate! (I used semisweet chocolate chips, since I don’t like white chocolate much. I also used frozen blueberries, which were perfect). I didn’t dare make the Amaretto cream (first because I ran out of cream, but mostly because I knew I would eat it, and this dish is soooo not in my diet). Did I mention this recipe is super simple? It is.
The bread on top was crunchy and buttery, the blueberries and chocolate chips burst in my mouth like little flavor explosions, and the creamy bread pudding under the top crust was divinely sweet and tangy from the sourdough. I couldn’t resist eating a bowlful myself. I even shared it with my son after he helped me bake it (he never gets dessert–he’s only 2!), and he liked it so much we had a five-minute conversation that consisted of: “Mmm! Mmm mmm mmm!” In fact, when I carried it to the car to take to my friend’s office, he demanded bites of it while in his car seat. My mouth is watering just looking at its picture again. Make this bread pudding – you’ll be surprised what bread can do.
Crispy, gooey, sourdough-y, blueberry goodness…
Blueberry Bread Pudding
BREAD PUDDING Ingredients:
- 4 eggs
- 2 cups heavy or whipping cream
- 2 cups milk
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 6 cups cubed day-old bread
- 6 ounces white chocolate chips
- 2 cups fresh or 1 cup dried blueberries
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
AMARETTO CREAM Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup Amaretto
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
In a large bowl, beat eggs with a whisk until light and fluffy. Beat in cream, milk, brown sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon. Add bread, chocolate chips, and blueberries, stirring gently with spoon. Drizzle with melted butter and stir to mix. Let stand for 30 minutes for bread to absorb the egg mixture.
Heat oven to 350°F. Butter a 10 x 14-inch baking dish. Scrape in bread mixture, distributing evenly. Bake about 1 hour until firm when pressed in the center. Remove to wire rack and cool about 20 minutes until just warm.
In a small bowl, combine Amaretto and cornstarch with a whisk until smooth. In a medium saucepan, bring cream to a boil over medium heat. Add sugar and beat with a whisk until dissolved. Add Amaretto, stirring constantly with whisk and return to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring until thickened. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
Top individual servings of bread pudding with Amaretto Cream.
Serves 8.
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Junior League of Honolulu Cookbooks 