Pudding with Apples

Made with layers of cinnamon raisin bread, Granny Smith apples and raisins, this apple bread pudding recipe adapted from The Artful Palate is a real comfort food that makes a scrumptious breakfast or luscious dessert. Top it with whipped cream or custard or serve with vanilla ice cream for a full on decadent treat. It is excellent for afternoon tea or coffee. You can also make this recipe with day old bread or sourdough bread. Crusty bread makes a more scrumptious bread pudding with a crispy crust around the edges after it is baked. 

A bread-based dessert, brad pudding is soft and moist and is a popular dish in many countries including the southern United States, Argentina, Malta, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Belgium, France, Great Britain, and Ireland. There is no fixed recipe for making bread pudding and the dish can vary from country to country and even from kitchen to kitchen. In this recipe, sliced raising bread is enhanced with a mixture of eggs, milk, sugar, pure vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, and butter. Sliced apples and raisins are alternately layered with the bread to make a sumptuously textured, wonderfully flavored and irresistibly aromatic dish. 

The bread soaks up the flavorful and aromatic liquid and transforms into a wonderful pudding as it bakes. Bread pudding can be served as is or it can be topped with a sweet sauce to make it even more luscious. Aside from whipped cream, custard, or ice cream, bread pudding can also be topped with caramel sauce, chocolate sauce, rum sauce, or whisky sauce, vanilla cream or sprinkled with powdered sugar and served warm in slices or squares. For breakfast, apple bread pudding is delicious with maple syrup and enjoyed like pancakes or French toast. Indulge in bread pudding with some bacon, ham, or country sausages for a full and satisfying breakfast. 

Ingredients 

1 loaf cinnamon raising bread 

8 eggs 

2 cups milk 

1/2 cup + ½ cup granulated sugar 

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract 

4 Granny Smith apples 

1 cup golden raisins 

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon 

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg 

3 tablespoons butter 

1. The day before you wish to serve the apple bread pudding, butter a 2 quart baking dish. Line some of the bread slices along the sides and bottom of this dish, trimming the bread pieces as necessary so they don’t overlap. Be sure to leave a little bread poking above the rim of the dish. 

2. Beat the eggs in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the milk, ½ cup of sugar, and the vanilla. Pour half this mixture into the bread-lined dish. 

3. Place a layer of apple slices over the milk mixture, sprinkle some the golden raisins over this, then top with a layer of bread slices. Alternate layers of apples, raisins, and bread slices until the dish is filled. End with a layer of bread. 

4. Place the baking dish on a baking tray, then pour the remaining milk mixture over the last layer of bread. 

5. Stir together the cinnamon, nutmeg, and ½ cup sugar in a small bowl. Sprinkle this mixture over the top of the bread pudding. Cover and refrigerate overnight, or for at least 6 hours. 

6. The following day, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Remove the chilled dish from the refrigerator, uncover, and place directly in the oven. Bake for 45 to 60 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve warm with a dollop of whipped cream.