bread pudding

This lightly spiced, booze and extra thick bread pudding is made from croissant bread. There is twice the custard to bread. This bread pudding is crunchy on the outside and custardy smooth on the inside.

Ingredients:
makes 1-pound loaf pan

Bread Pudding:
– 6 large croissants, cut into small cubes
– 6 eggs
– 2 2/3 cups half and half
– 2/3 cup sugar
– 1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
– 2 tsp. vanilla extract
– 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
– 1/4 cup rum (optional)

Creme Anglaise:
– 1 cup milk
– 3 yolks
– 3 tbsp. sugar
– 1/8 tsp. salt
– 1 tsp. vanilla bean paste
Preparations :
Bread Pudding:
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Place croissant cubes in a greased loaf pan.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the rest of ingredients. Pour over croissant.
4. Bake in a water bath for 45-50 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
5. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.
Creme Anglaise:
1. In a pot, bring milk to a simmer. At the same time, whisk together the rest of ingredients in a medium bowl.
2. Slowly pour warm milk into yolk mixture. Whisk until sugar has dissolved.
3. Pour the custard back to the pot, and continue whisking until it reaches 165 degrees.
4. Remove from heat, strain the custard into a bowl set over an ice-bath to stop the cooking process.