GIVEAWAY CLOSED
Bread pudding is one of those old-school, throwback desserts. At it’s simplest: old bread, milk, eggs, sugar.
At it’s most decadent, bread pudding could contain any number of additions–nuts, chocolate, fruit, spices–and could be enriched even further with cream and butter. It has a revered place in the recipe repertoire of so many grandmothers, and always seems to be welcomed with great anticipation and eager appetites. Which is really no surprise, as bread pudding is nostaligic, homespun, resourceful, and–for some–the epitome of comfort.
Confession. Before I started baking, I hated bread pudding. I thought it was too eggy and too raisin-y. I just didn’t believe. It wasn’t until I started making bread pudding, 3 days a week, at a bakery I was working at that I realized…bread pudding is kind of like french toast.
Duh.
With that idea rolling around in my head I decided that I would make a cinnamon-toast version. Let me just say, it was a really good decision. The top of the pudding gets this crunchy, oven baked crust that just cannot be replicated on the stovetop. It’s cinnamon-sugar ultra-toast…the crunchy goodness of my dreams. The interior is soft and pillowy from the silky custard soaked bread…if I could I would take a nap in it. It smells and tastes like fancy breakfast. The kind of thing you might find at a holiday brunch all warm and burnished from the oven. It reheats like a gem and does not suffer from a drizzle of maple syrup or even a splash of heavy cream. People, I have been converted.
To celebrate my new-found bread pudding love, I’m doing a giveaway!
The good folks at CSN contacted me and asked if I’d like to host a giveaway with them. Since I love you guys and I love to give you stuff, I said yes!
The prize is a one-time use gift code for $45 that can be used toward a purchase of your choice on any of their 220+ websites. If you check out their websites, they pretty much sell it all from cookware to recessed lighting, so you will definitely be able to find something worthwhile!
To Enter:
I hate to say it, but this giveaway is only open to readers in the US and Canada. Bummer.
You can enter once by telling me what your favorite weekend breakfast is in the comment section below.
You can enter a 2nd time by tweeting about this giveaway on Twitter with a link to this post or by sharing this giveaway on Facebook with a link to this post (be sure to be a fan of Hungry Girl Por Vida first!), then come back here and comment again with a link to your Twitter or Facebook.
Giveaway ends Thursday, March 17th. Winner will be announced Friday, March 18th. Change of plans, I will announce the winner Saturday, March 19th.
Cinnamon-Sugar Bread Pudding
Adapted from Martha Stewart.
I assembled this bread pudding the night before and baked it in the morning. The custard was allowed to soak into the bread overnight, if you don’t have that kind of time allow it to soak for at least 1 hour. The custard is made more flavorful with the addition of bourbon and vanilla bean. I served this bread pudding with raspberries macerated in some sugar.
4 large eggs
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup heavy cream
pinch of salt
5 tablespoons of sugar, divided
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons bourbon
1/2 vanilla bean, seeded, or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 slices of white bread
4 tablespoons of softened, unsalted butter
In a small bowl combine 2 tablespoons of the sugar with the cinnamon. Spread soft butter, evenly, over 8 slices of bread. Sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar and slice bread in half (I used a bread from a round loaf, if using sandwich bread slice in half diagonally). Arrange slices in a spiral pattern, overlapping as needed in a 9-inch round pie plate.
In a medium bowl whisk together eggs, milk, cream, remaining sugar, bourbon, and vanilla. Whisk well to combine. Pour custard over arranged bread slices and press down ever-so-gently to absorb. Cover and place in the refrigerator to soak for at least 1 hour, up to overnight.
Remove pudding from refrigerator and preheat oven to 400F. Bake in oven until puffed, golden, and custard is no longer runny. Serve baked pudding warm with berries, syrup, or cream.
awww. your cinnamon sugar bread pudding sounds so awesome! will attempt your recipe if i ever get down to making my first bread pudding!too bad i can’t enter your fabulous giveaway but i’ll tell you my favourite weekend breakfast anyway! pancakes has my heart right now but i can never forget the breakfast my dad used to buy and make for me on the weekends when i was little and so my favourite weekend breakfast item/s are the half-boiled eggs(dad-made), soya bean curd and roti prata (fried flour-based pancake)with egg and fish curry! have a great week! 🙂
too bad you couldn’t enter…next time though! it’s so interesting to see how different breakfast can be in each different place… thanks for sharing!!
I’ve been hankering for some peanut butter and banana stuffed french toast. Perhaps with some crispy fried tofu on the side. Mmmm..
pancakes with strawberries, maple syrup and fresh whipped cream!!
I would have to say my favorite breakfast is anything my husband makes for me (as long as he cleans up after) 🙂
This bread pudding sure looks delicious, especially with the fresh raspberries. YUM!
Aw this looks so yummy! And awesome giveaway. My favorite weekend breakfast is my boyfriend’s cheesy scrambled eggs with toast and veggie Italian sausage and A1 sauce.
And I posted about this giveaway on Facebook! http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/profile.php?id=1501332
My dad is from Belgium and makes incredible Belgian waffles. Those are my fav’s with fresh fruit and maple syrup on top, but we have them with yoghurt instead of whipped cream.
Ooooh, that bread pudding sounds totally delicious!! My favorite weekend breakfast is huevos rancheros and home fries. Yummmmmmm. 🙂
My fav weekend breakfast happens when I visit my sister and brother in law. My amazing brother in law makes my sister and I coffee, omelets, hash browns, bacon. It’s amazing. Sometimes I like to add in French toast. 🙂
Ooooh, love bread pudding…and this looks yum.
Weekend breakfast has eggs, some sort of meat like ham or steak or chorizo, sometimes potatoes, tortillas or homemade bread. Just something we don’t have time to do during the week.
Just tried making Belgian waffles topped it with Bonchon chicken. It was for dinner but I don’t think I’d mind it for breakfast either!
Cinnamon rolls are always good for breakfast, but this looks so good!
I love breakfast pizza.
Favorite weekend breakfast would be eggs Benedict, for sure!
My favourite weekend breakfast is eggs mixed with crème fraiche and then made into omelettes featuring whatever strikes our fancy in the fridge. We usually add in cheese (Gruyère or Dubliner have been favourites lately), too. On the side, slow-cooked hashbrowns with thyme, garlic and onion. Sometimes there’s also fruit, bacon or ham.
French Toast with bananas in the egg mixture! YUMMY!!
My favorite breakfast would have to be banana pancakes with nutella spread. Delicious!
My fav weekend breakfast is the same thing I have most mornings: my super deluxe oatmeal with dried cranberries, almonds and cinnamon, and topped with maple syrup and hemp milk. Except for my baking habit, I’m kind of a healthy girl!
Blueberry pancakes.. and the bread pudding looks amazing! 🙂
My favorite breakfast has to be crepes. Both sweet (sweetened cream cheese with a strawberry sauce spiked with Grand Marnier) and savory (smoked salmon and cream cheese with chives). Sigh, nothing is better than leisurely cooking breakfast on a weekend.
http://twitter.com/#!/leavingthecity
My favorite weekend breakfast comes from an old I Love Lucy episode. She wins a a bet with Ricky, and he has to make her breakfast in bed: eggs Benedict, honeydew melon filled with strawberries, and hot chocolate. Yum!
P.S. I just recently discovered your blog (through a Joy the Baker post) and I love it! Please keep up the great work 🙂
I love leisurely Saturday morning breakfasts with my wonderful husband. I make pancakes (from scratch, with a little vanilla & a little nutmeg–makes them sooo good!), and he does the bacon. Add butter, maple syrup, and whatever fresh fruit looks good at the farmers market, plus big cups of coffee. Yum!
I love french toast and bacon on Sundays. This week I may just make this recipe instead!
I love weekend breakfasts with pumpkin pancakes and maple butter syrup!
a frittata made from fresh eggs from my ducks and chickens with some yummy veggies and cheese.
I’ve never liked bread pudding either, but I love french toast, so I think I’m going to have to give it another try. This recipe looks like a great place to start!
While I don’t treat myself to it often, I think my favorite weekend breakfast is Big Pancake (aka Dutch baby or German pancake). Starting with salted butter is a must for me, and I always add a pinch of nutmeg, but from there I can eat it any number of ways: with maple or ginger syrup, fresh fruit, lemon and powdered sugar or even plain. It’s delicious, impressive looking and easy to make, but it’s definitely the kind of thing that I would never have time to make on a weekday morning because I’m such a get-up-at-the-last-minute kind of gal.
My favorite weekend breakfast has to be quiche! I made my first quiche about 2 years ago and have love experimenting with different ingredient combinations ever since.
My favorite weekend breakfast is Blueberry Cream Cheese French Toast.
I found your site after doing a search for Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread. I’m planning to make it tomorrow. Looks delicious! Thanks for the giveaway!
Our favorite weekend breakfast is when my darling hubby makes his famous pancakes, a few eggs over easy, yummy whole wheat toast, oj…and of course lots of coffee! I LOVE your site – so many great yummy recipes. I am your latest subscriber!
Chelsea
Chelsea, thanks! i love it when my husband makes breakfast for me…it’s pretty much the best.
I love oats with Cookies and cream/chocolate etc protein powder stirred in, maple syrup, Greek Yogurt, protein muffins etc. I end up making huge “parfait” out of it!!!
My favorite…french toast!!!
On the weekends we vary from a Dutch baby to pancakes or waffles to crepes. Lots of dough-y things, I guess. I would like a fresh scone now and again, though!
Cheers,
*Heather*
Oh, I adore bread pudding, but NOT with raisins. : ) I love how pretty yours looks!!