Michelle and I LOVE food, pumpkin-flavored things, and The Cracked Pepper Bistro's bread pudding, so we decided to put our own twist to that famous bread pudding and make it pumpkiny! I told Michelle that this is the best thing I've ever made with another person. This is one of the best things I've ever made period! It looks and tastes like something you could order at a high-end restaurant. I'm making this again without a doubt. We used this recipe from Rosa's Yummy Yums but added pumpkin to the caramel sauce and added real whipped cream (with pumpkin in that too!).
Somehow my cat smelled that caramel sauce and went NUTS! Look at her begging! She rarely does this. I let her lick some of the caramel (in a separate bowl and just for half of a second--don't worry), and she went crazy. She loves butter and milk, and this is made of butter and heavy whipping cream, so maybe that's why? Speaking of cats and food, according to my vet and the staff at his site, cats and dogs are ONLY supposed to eat cat and dog food, with the exception of a little bit of peanut butter. Cats are lactose intolerant, which is so stupid because why do all of the cats in the media drink milk?
Michelle & Corrie's Triple Pumpkin Bread Pudding (adapted from Rosa and Jessica's "Pumpkin Bread with Caramel Sauce" .. who found the original recipe from Bon Appétit):
M & C's additions:
(1) Heavy whipping cream - whipped with sugar and a tablespoon of pureed pumpkin and then later topped with nutmeg
(2) Add a tiny glob of pureed pumpkin to the caramel sauce!
Pumpkin challah bread pudding:
2 cups (480ml) half and half (we added non-fat milk to heavy whipping cream)
1 3/4 cups (525g) pumpkin puree
1 cup (240g) + 2 Tbs packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
4-5 tsps Pumpkin Pie spice (we used 4.5 teaspoons)
2 tsps Ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
10 cups (~10-ounces) 1.3cm (1/2-inch) cubes challah (or regular white bread)
1. Preheat oven to 180° C (350°F).
2. Whisk half and half, pumpkin, brown sugar, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon & vanilla extract in large bowl to blend
3. Fold in bread cubes
4. Transfer mixture to 28x18cm (11x7-inch) Pyrex/glass greased baking dish.
5. Let stand 15 min
6. Bake the pumpkin bread pudding until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean (~40 minutes)
Caramel sauce:
1 1/4 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream (double cream)
7. Whisk brown sugar & butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat until butter melts
7. Whisk brown sugar & butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat until butter melts
8. Whisk in the cream & stir until sugar dissolves & sauce is smooth (~3 min)
9. Serve warm with caramel sauce
