Drunken Brandy-Peach Bread Pudding

Name: Drunken Brandy-Peach Bread Pudding
Yield: serves 12 to 14 with leftovers
Ingredients: 2 cups granulated sugar; 4 cups half-and-half or heavy whipping cream; 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 3 large eggs; 1 loaf challah or French bread, cut or torn into 2-inch chunks; 3 cups chopped fresh peaches (about 6 peaches); 1 cup pecan halves; 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter; 1 cup firmly packed golden brown sugar; 1 large egg; Pinch of kosher salt; 1/4 cup peach brandy or liqueur of your choice

December 14, 2011

A great do-ahead dessert for a large crowd. Although I make it most often with fresh peaches, the recipe works with just about any fruit-nut combo you can dream up, including fresh berries and hazelnuts, fresh pears and almonds, bananas and pecans, or even craisins or raisins and pecans.

Recipe information

Yield
serves 12 to 14 with leftovers

Ingredients

Peach Bread Pudding

2 cups granulated sugar

4 cups half-and-half or heavy whipping cream

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3 large eggs

1 loaf challah or French bread, cut or torn into 2-inch chunks

3 cups chopped fresh peaches (about 6 peaches)

1 cup pecan halves

Peach Brandy Sauce

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

1 cup firmly packed golden brown sugar

1 large egg

Pinch of kosher salt

1/4 cup peach brandy or liqueur of your choice

Preparation

Step 1
TO MAKE THE BREAD PUDDING: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 by 13-inch baking pan with butter or cooking spray. Mix the granulated sugar, half-and-half, and cinnamon in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir occasionally until the sugar dissolves. (No need to boil the mixture.) Remove the saucepan from the heat.
Step 2
Whisk the 3 eggs in a bowl until the whites and yolks are combined. Pour about 1/4 cup of the hot cream mixture into the eggs, whisking as you pour. (This tempers the eggs, which keeps them from curdling when they are mixed into the hot cream mixture.) Pour the tempered egg mixture into the cream mixture left in the saucepan and whisk until the sauce is smooth.
Step 3
Gently combine the bread cubes and peaches in a large bowl. Spoon into the prepared pan. Pour the sauce over the peach-bread mixture and let sit for about 30 minutes to let the sauce soak into the bread. Sprinkle the pecans on top.
Step 4
Bake until the pudding is firm and lightly browned on top, about 1 hour. Cut into squares and serve warm or at room temperature with warm Peach Brandy Sauce.
Step 5
TO MAKE THE PEACH BRANDY SAUCE: Melt the butter and brown sugar together in a saucepan set over medium heat. Remove the mixture from the heat. In a bowl, whisk the 1 egg with a fork. Temper the egg by adding about 2 tablespoons of the butter-sugar mixture to the egg and whisk constantly until the egg is incorporated. Pour the tempered egg mixture into the saucepan with the remaining sugar-butter mixture and whisk until the sauce is smooth. Add the salt and whisk in the brandy. Keep the sauce warm until ready to serve. Pour it over the bread putting as soon as it comes out of the oven.
do it early
Step 6
The bread pudding can be made up to 12 hours in advance, covered, and refrigerated. Warm in a 300°F oven. The sauce can be made up to 48 hours in advance and refrigerated until ready to use. Reheat it in a heavy saucepan set over low heat until it is warm but not hot; or microwave it on medium power in a microwave-safe container until warm, about 1 to 2 minutes.

Pastry Queen Parties by Rebecca Rather and Alison Oresman. Copyright © 2009 Rebecca Rather and Alison Oresman. Published by Ten Speed Press. All Rights Reserved. A pastry chef, restaurateur, and cookbook author, native Texan Rebecca Rather has been proprietor of the Rather Sweet Bakery and Café since 1999. Open for breakfast and lunch daily, Rather Sweet has a fiercely loyal cadre of regulars who populate the café’s sunlit tables each day. In 2007, Rebecca opened her eponymous restaurant, serving dinner nightly, just a few blocks from the café. Rebecca is the author of THE PASTRY QUEEN, and has been featured in Texas Monthly, Gourmet, Ladies Home Journal, Food & Wine, Southern Living, Chocolatier, Saveur, and O, The Oprah Magazine. When she isn’t in the bakery or on horseback, Rebecca enjoys the sweet life in Fredericksburg, where she tends to her beloved backyard garden and menagerie, and eagerly awaits visits from her college-age daughter, Frances. Alison Oresman has worked as a journalist for more than twenty years. She has written and edited for newspapers in Wyoming, Florida, and Washington State. As an entertainment editor for the Miami Herald, she oversaw the paper’s restaurant coverage and wrote a weekly column as a restaurant critic. After settling in Washington State, she also covered restaurants in the greater Seattle area as a critic with a weekly column. A dedicated home baker, Alison is often in the kitchen when she isn't writing. Alison lives in Bellevue, Washington, with her husband, Warren, and their children, Danny and Callie.

TagsDessert Pudding Bread Pudding Brandy Alcohol Beverages American British European Peach Stone Fruit Fruit Pecan Nut Vegetarian Make Ahead Baking Summer Cookbooks

Recipe information

Ingredients

Peach Bread Pudding

Peach Brandy Sauce

Preparation

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

Step 5

do it early

Step 6

Recipe notes