Savoury bread pudding – using leftover bread rolls

Do you have left over bread or bread rolls lying around? Don’t need to make any more breadcrumbs? Wondering what to make with the bread or bread rolls before they stale and mouldy? No room in the freezer for it either! (Maybe there was no room in the freezer for the bread rolls to begin with!) Don’t throw the bread away! Give this savoury bread pudding a try – you won’t be disappointed!

Most of us love a good bread and butter pudding, am I right? The silky smooth custard soaking into the bread then baked until crispy on top and custard setting with a slight wobble. . . Sounds really, really good! I wish I had the cream in the fridge! I really am making myself hungry for some right now while writing this!

Bread and butter pudding is traditionally a British dessert. It’s usually made with buttered bread, layered with raisins in an oven dish, poured over with custard. It’s baked and served hot with cream or ice cream on the side. There are many variations using jams, berries or chocolate with either croissants or brioche.

Imagine a savoury version of bread pudding! My adaptation of BreadIn5’s savoury bread pudding is full of flavour with the perfect consistency – a slight wobble to the bread when you cut through the pudding to a crispy, cheesy topping. My blue cheese, caramalised onion and bacon pudding was just perfect the way it was! I look forward to trying different savoury fillings and playing with flavours.

TIP 1: When transferring the egg mixture to the bread and filling in the dish, use a soup ladle or small measuring jug. This will ensure all of the bread gets soaked in the egg mixture evenly. There is no wastage of egg mixture either – it goes straight into the dish.

TIP 2: Feel free to experiment with flavours. Keep it as simple as you like – bread, egg mixture and bacon – or be adventurous and try different flavours.

TIP 3: Looking for individual servings? Make this pudding in ramekins. Turns out perfectly!

 

PREP: 1 hour & 15 minutes   COOK: 45 minutes plus 5 minutes standing time
SERVES: 4-6 people as a main or 8 people as a side

INGREDIENTS:
Caramalised onions:
2 large onions, finely sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
¼ cup water

Savoury bread pudding:
4-5 rashers of bacon, trimmed of fat and sliced
1 tablespoon olive oil
12 white dinner rolls (450 grams), cut into cubes
5 eggs
3 cups milk
2 tablespoons sour cream
Salt and pepper to taste
½ teaspoon dried thyme
4 button mushrooms, finely sliced
4 cubes (150 grams) frozen spinach
85 grams blue cheese, crumbled
1 cup grated tasty cheese
Canola (or olive) oil spray for casserole dish

METHOD:
Make the caramalised onions first, so they cool enough to add to the pudding.

Heat the oil in a frypan and add the bacon. Fry for 8 minutes. Drain on a paper towel lined bowl. Set aside until needed.

While the onions and bacon are cooling, make the egg mixture. Place the eggs, milk and sour cream in a large mixing bowl and gently whisk until well combined. Add salt and pepper to taste, along with the thyme and combine well.

Spray a deep, ceramic casserole dish with the canola oil spray. I used my 190cm diameter ceramic dish. Heat the oven to 160°C (325°F).

Line the bottom of the dish with a single layer of bread cubes. Top with spinach, blue cheese, onions, mushrooms and bacon. Repeat process until all ingredients have been used. You want to end up with a layer of bread cubes on the top. Gently press the bread and filling down, so when you put the egg mixture in, there’s no overflow.

  

Pour the egg mixture all over the bread and fillings. Allow to stand for 10 minutes to ensure the egg soaks into the bread. Gently press the bread and fillings down to make sure the bread is soaked well and top with the grated cheese.

Place in the oven and bake for 45 minutes.

Allow to stand 5 minutes before serving – as much as you may be starving, this will help the egg set.

Serve on a dinner plate, as it is or as a side with any meat or fish dish.

Don’t forget to comment below if you try different flavours. I love hearing your flavour ideas.

As seen on Bake Play Smile’s. Come and join, it’s lots of fun to meet other people who love to cook.