Friday, February 15, 2019

IRISH BREAD AND BUTTER PUDDING


Another nice simple recipe: bread, butter, eggs, milk, sugar and raisins. It still falls under the heading of “comfort food” even though it comes from a pub cookbook. I will confess that dessert is not why I go to Irish pubs, but this sounded tasty, and it does turn a pretty gold when it’s cooked.


Bread and Butter Pudding

Ingredients:


6 Tblsp salted butter, softened

6 thick slices hearty white bread
1/4 cup each of raisins, golden raisins and currants (or other dried fruit)
3 large eggs
1-1/4 cups whole milk
2/3 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
Grated nutmeg (optional)
1 Tblsp demerara (coarse) sugar

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Use a little butter to grease a 9”x9” or 8"x10" baking pan. Then use the rest of the butter to generously coat the bread slices (both sides). Cut the slices into quarters or halves (depending on your bread) and overlap half of them in the bottom of the baking dish.


Scatter half the dried fruit over the bread. Cover with the rest of the bread slices and add the rest of the dried fruit.



Whisk the eggs in a large pitcher (or a bowl with a pour spout), then mix in the cream, milk and granulated sugar. Pour the mixture over the bread layers and let stand for 15 minutes more or less so the bread soaks up some of the liquid.

Grate some nutmeg over the top (if you want) then sprinkle on the demerara sugar.


Place the dish on a baking sheet and bake in the upper part of the preheated oven for 30-40 minutes until the liquid is set and the bread is golden-brown on top.

Remove from the oven and serve warm. (This will cut fairly easily without falling apart.)


You can vary the type of bread you use, and also the dried fruit. Or add some candied fruit as well.

I'm still trying to remember if I've ever had dessert in an Irish pub. Of course, "pub" is a variable term--it can be anything from a dark hole in the wall with a bunch of guys drinking pints and not saying much to a large space filled with people who might happen to be playing Trivial Pursuit (I've seen it), that just happens to have a bar somewhere in the room. But most of them are friendly places, so why not have dessert?

(P.S. I'd give you more pretty pictures but I'm between computers and everything seems to be somewhere else. But Maura and her staff are building a new kitchen at Sullivan's, so I'll be looking for easy pub recipes. Funny--the same thing is happening at the "real" pub, Connolly's, that's the model for Sullivan's. Last time I looked, what used to be the kitchen was rubble, but the new one will be bigger and better!)


6 comments:

  1. Though I can't say what might be served as dessert in an Irish Pub, bread and butter pudding surely could be wonderfully satisfying. It is a dessert that can be homey or dressed up to be fancy. Funny how I forget about something so wonderful that can be pulled together from pantry staples.

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    1. I was also pleased by how well it lasted (in the fridge). Helps to use sturdy bread.

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  2. Thank you for the recipe. I haven't had bread pudding in years so I'm looking forward to making this one. The last one I had was at a Louisiana plantation tea room. I think I'll focus on bread pudding recipes from all over the world for awhile. :)

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    1. That sounds like fun! You can vary the bread you use, and the extras like raisins (what about dried cranberries? Blueberries?).

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  3. Maybe some Irish brown bread?
    And Irish Whisky sauce?

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