Email to Stella      

Pudding: Margie's Maker's Mark Bread Pudding

Source of Recipe

Margie Potts


List of Ingredients

½ Cup Raisins
¼ Cup Maker's Mark Bourbon (or any Bourbon)
2 Cups Milk
¾ Cup Granulated Sugar
1 Tsp. Vanilla Extract
1 Tsp. Ground Cinnamon
Pinch of salt
4 Tab. Butter or margarine, melted and cooled slightly
3 Large eggs, lightly beaten
4 Heaping Cups French bread or firm white bakery bread, torn or cut into ¾ " pieces (remove crusts if tough or thick)



Recipe

Soak raisins in the Maker's Mark Bourbon for ½ hour. Drain, reserving liquid.
Butter an 8" square glass or ceramic baking dish.

Whisk or beat together milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, salt, and butter. Whisk in eggs until smooth. Whisk in the reserved liquid from the raisins. (NOTE: If you simply want a hint of the Maker's Mark flavor in the bread pudding, add the raisins and discard the reserved liquid.) Add bread pieces, tossing to coat. Stir in raisins. Cover and refrigerate 20 minutes or up to 4 hours, as this will allow the bread to soak up the milk mixture. (You can also spoon into the prepared buttered baking dish and refrigerate if you prefer.)

Take mixture from the refrigerator and spoon into buttered baking dish (if you have not already done so).

Mix 2 teaspoons of granulated sugar with ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon to make a cinnamon sugar to sprinkle over the top of the bread mixture in the dish - this is an optional step, but my family loves it!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover baking dish with foil and place covered baking dish into a 13 x 9" metal baking or roasting pan. Add very hot water to pan to a depth of approximately 1". Bake, covered at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 20 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean or nearly so.

Set on wire rack to cool slightly, as this bread pudding is best served warm. It's also fabulous served with the simple custard sauce recipe below. (You can also serve this bread pudding with ice cream - Vanilla or Pecan Praline or whipped cream or fat-free caramel sauce.)

If you have any leftovers, refrigerate and warm in the microwave before serving.

Maker's Mark Bourbon Custard Sauce

1 Cup Granulated Sugar
½ Cup Butter
½ Cup Half and Half cream
2 Tab. Maker's Mark Bourbon Whiskey (or substitute ½ Tsp. Vanilla Extract)

Bring first 3 ingredients to a boil in a heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Take from heat. Stir in the Maker's Mark Bourbon or the vanilla extract. Cool. Serve over Bread Pudding.

NO ALCOHOL: You can also make this bread pudding without bourbon. Do not soak the raisins in the bourbon; simply add the plain raisins in the recipe after the bread and add the vanilla extract in lieu of the bourbon in the custard sauce.

NOTE: This bread pudding was cooked in a water bath to achieve a smoother and more custard-like texture than some bread puddings. I hope you like this touch. (As an added benefit, it is the only bread pudding I've found that is still fabulous re-heated.)