Savory Bread Pudding
(cook in advance)
This bread pudding makes a filling meal for a whole family. Only the eggs, milk, and bread are necessary - everything else can be substituted with other things or left out. This recipe is also good for hiding vegetables in, if you have picky children to feed.
The necessary parts:
6 cups of torn-up stale or toasted bread (6 slices of sandwich bread)
6 eggs
1 ½ cups milk
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
Optional ingredients:
ham, cooked chicken, cooked bacon, cooked sausage, or other cooked meat
Cheese, grated or cut into cubes
Chopped or grated vegetables, including onion, winter squash, greens, or peas
Other spices of your choice, including sage, rosemary, cumin, garlic, or whatever sounds good.
Fill a loaf pan or casserole dish with the torn bread, plus whatever optionals you wish to add. Beat together the eggs, milk, salt, pepper, and optional spices. Pour this mixture over the bread. If any bits of bread remain sticking out of the liquid, push them down into the liquid. Bake at 400 degrees for about 50 minutes if you use a loaf pan, or 35 minutes if you use a casserole dish. The pudding is done when it has become solid all the way through the middle. To take the guesswork out, you can also use a thermometer. The pudding will be done when the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.
If you cook this in a loaf pan, then cook the loaf pan on top of a cookie sheet to catch the overflow.
I had heard talk of kale chips being delicious, so of course I had to try this. My first attempt was overcooked and over-salted, but to my shock, my toddler not only tried the chips, but loved them. He saw me washing some greens this afternoon and ran over yelling "kale chips!" I need to double check the salt quantity again, and come up with some variants, but this is essentially it:
Kale Chips
(quick snack)
As odd as this recipe sounds, if your kids like potato chips, chances are they will love kale chips!
2 cups kale, torn into chip-sized pieces
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp oil
Preheat an oven to 350 degrees. Wash the kale, and pat it dry with a clean dish towel. The more dry the kale, the better the chips will be. Tear the kale leaves off of the thick stems (which you can discard) and into chip-sized pieces. Then, in a mixing bowl, toss the kale with the salt and oil, mixing it thoroughly with your hand until the leaves are evenly coated.
Spread the kale on a cookie sheet, and bake for about 10 minutes, until the leaves are crunchy but not burned.
I'll have to try the bread pudding recipe. I have used it more for a desert than a meal in prior cookings. I also used a make shift double boiler to ensure it cooks through.
ReplyDeleteI have a nice cast iron deep frying pan. I have used a 2 or 3 qt casserole put in the frying pan and then filled the frying pan with water up to an inch below the top. It does require good strength and careful balance to remove from the oven when done.
The bread pudding cooked this way was delicious. My daughters liked chocolate flavoring and we usually sprinkled chocolate chips in the mix to create a double chocolate delight.
Ohh, interesting, I've never used a double boiler, and I didn't know that technique was involved in making bread puddings. I'll have to look into that. Thanks Steve!
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