Dessert from leftover bread

CEBU, Philippines — In summer, there’s this tendency of homemakers to over-shop food items. Since the kids are mostly at home, caring parents – mothers in particular – want to stuff the pantry full. Just in case the kids get hungry in between meals, there would always be something to grab.

One common item that’s over-stocked is bread. A summer morning’s bread supply would actually last three mornings during school days, even if the kids would bring some of it as sandwich to school for snack. There’s a joke about overly thoughtful mothers: They see to it that the kids are full when hungry.

And so there’s a high possibility of two-day old bread lying around… until finally given the verdict of moving on to the garbage bin. What a waste! Especially these days when food prices are zooming up.

Leftover bread can actually be given a second chance. It can even be made better – there’s no worry about bread-taste fatigue in the kids. It can be made into bread pudding!

Here’s a bread pudding recipe from Mark Bittman, at https://cooking.nytimes.com, that’s so simple and easy to do at home. It takes only 45 minutes to make and produces six to eight delicious servings. 

Simple Bread Pudding

Ingredients:

½ loaf bread, cut into 2-inch cubes (about 5 to 6 cups)

2 eggs, beaten

2 cups milk

2 tablespoons unsalted butter (¼ more for greasing the pan)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

? cup sugar

Pinch of salt

Procedure:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a small saucepan over low heat, warm milk, butter, vanilla, sugar and salt. Continue cooking just until the butter melts, and then let it cool. Meanwhile, butter a 4-to-6-cup baking dish and fill it with the cubed bread.

2. Add eggs to cooled milk mixture and whisk; pour mixture over bread. Bake for 30 to 45 minutes, or until custard is set but still a little wobbly and edges of bread have browned. Serve warm or at room temperature.

NOTES: To customize, consider adding fresh or dried fruit or a combination of spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and cardamom. Or add a handful of chocolate chips before baking for a decidedly more decadent outcome.

This simple bread pudding makes a great dessert or brunch dish.