It is entirely forgivable if you think of bread pudding as a winter dessert. It can be dense and rich. But I'm here to tell you that it also makes a fantastic summer dessert. This Strawberry White Chocolate Bread Pudding is the perfect dessert for a beautiful summer day. The combination of strawberries and white chocolate tastes like pure sunshine. Now, don't you want to eat sunshine? I know I do. Alright, enough chit chat, let's take a look at the recipe.
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The Base
The base of this Strawberry White Chocolate Bread Pudding is a perfect base for any bread pudding. You could substitute the strawberries in this recipe for blueberries, or replace the strawberries and white chocolate for bananas and dark chocolate. The point is that when you master this recipe, you are learning to make bread pudding period. So, you can use this recipe to create your own by adding new combinations of ingredients. The base is four eggs, a half-cup each whole milk, and whipping cream then three-quarters of a cup of sugar. Mix this all together.
The Bread
You can't have bread pudding without bread. Shocker, I know. Ideally, a lovely brioche is a perfect bread for bread pudding. However, I am using a basic gluten-free bread. You can use whatever bread you would like. The only recommendation I will make is to not to use a bread with too strong a crust as the crust won't soften that much. Use four cups of bread in total.
It is best to use either stale bread or to toast the bread before adding it into the egg mixture. Toasting the bread or using stale bread will help the bread keep its structure. So, rather than just being one solid mass of soggy bread, the bread pudding will have texture. You don't have to toast the bread or use stale bread, but I do recommend it.
Add the bread to the egg mixture, press it down and let it sit for about five minutes. You want the bread to absorb as much of the egg mixture as possible. As the bread pudding cooks, all that egg mixture in the bread will turn into a custard. Sounds good, doesn't it?
The Strawberries and White Chocolate
In total, use one cup of sliced strawberries. Keep that ratio in mind. If you are adding fruit to a bread pudding, go for a four to one ratio of bread to fruit. If you add more fruit than that, the juices that escape when cooking may water down the custard, ruining your bread pudding. Along with the strawberries, add in three ounces of chopped up white chocolate. You can add more chocolate if you'd like, but I found that three ounces to be the perfect amount.
Mix it and Bake It
With all of the ingredients in the bowl, and the bread finished soaking, mix it all up and pour it into a parchment-lined nine-inch pan. I used a little roasting pan from IKEA. You can use a nine-inch cake pan, or even put this in a lined muffin tin. I'll leave that up to you. Bake the bread pudding on 350°f for twenty-five minutes. If you make this in muffin tins, it will take about twenty minutes to bake.
Some people swear by baking their bread pudding in a water bath, but I don't find it needs it. I've had no issues baking this bread pudding without a water bath. If you do want to cook it that way, go ahead, it won't hurt anything, but it may extend the baking time by ten minutes or so.
Check the doneness of the bread pudding by giving the pan a little shake. If the whole thing wobbles a bit, it is probably done. If the center kind of waves, it's not done. You can also check it by sticking a knife in the center, like a cake it should come out clean. Once the bread pudding is baked, let it cool for five to ten minutes before digging in.
Serving The Strawberry White Chocolate Bread Pudding
You can serve your Strawberry White Chocolate Bread Pudding however you'd like, but I found it didn't really need anything. To make the plate pretty, I grated some white chocolate onto it before putting the bread pudding down, and I garnished it with a fresh strawberry, that was it. I don't think this needs a sauce, whipped cream, or ice cream. It is excellent on its own.
Conclusion
Even though I think that you should make this recipe (see the full recipe below), I think it is more valuable as a base recipe. I'd love to see what kind of unusual combinations you come up with. Tell me about them in the comments below.
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Ingredients
- 4 Eggs
- ½ cup Whipping Cream
- ½ cup Whole Milk
- ¾ cup Sugar
- 4 cups Stale or lightly toasted Gluten-Free Bread cut into small cubes You can use regular bread
- 1 cup Sliced, fresh Strawberries
- 3 oz White Chocolate, cut into small pieces
Instructions
- Mix the egg, milk, cream, and sugar.
- Add the bread to the egg and milk mixture and let sit for 5 minutes.
- Mix the strawberries into the bread mixture then the white chocolte.
- Pour the mixture into a parchment lined 9 inch pan, or lined muffin cups.
- Bake the bread pudding on 350°f for 25 minutes. If making muffins, bake for about 20 minutes.
- Cool slightly before serving.
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