judy bolton

Caramelized Chocolate Bread Pudding

Time: About 1 1/2 hours

About 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 to 6 1/2-inch-thick slices brioche
4 eggs
3 egg yolks
2 cups heavy cream
1 3/4 cups milk
2/3 cup light brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
4 ounces best quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 tablespoon raw sugar (optional)

Heat oven to 325 degrees. Place a large roasting pan in oven, and bring a
kettle of water to a boil. Generously butter brioche slices on one side;
cut in half diagonally. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg
yolks, heavy cream, milk, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
Sprinkle chocolate in a large casserole at least 3 inches deep. Lay slices
of bread, butter side up, over chocolate, overlapping slices like fish
scales. Use just enough bread to cover all the chocolate. Pour custard on
top, making sure to soak all the bread. When kettle comes to a boil, place
casserole inside roasting pan in oven and pour enough boiling water into
roasting pan to come halfway up sides of casserole. Bake until custard is
just set, 40 to 60 minutes, depending on dimensions of casserole. Pudding
is done when bread in center rises up and is bouncy to touch. Remove from
oven.

If you have a kitchen blowtorch, sprinkle sugar over top of pudding, and
use torch to lightly caramelize sugar. If you do not have a blowtorch,
skip this step (a broiler will curdle custard). Pudding should be served
warm, not hot.

Yield: 6 servings.

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