Aunt Hattie’s Bread Pudding

Serves 10 – 12

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Ingredients

large bowl cubed bread pieces

1 stick butter, melted, divided

4 cups whole milk

3 cups almond milk

2 cans evaporated milk

2 tablespoons lemon extract or lemon juice

2 cups of regular sugar or raw sugar

2 cans of organic raw brown sugar

2 tablespoons ginger, divided

2 tablespoons nutmeg, divided

2 tablespoons cinnamon, divided

2 tablespoons allspice, divided

2 tablespoons vanilla extract

2 cups white and brown raisins

6-8 eggs

Preparations

Preheat oven to 375 F

Dice bread in 1/2 inch pieces.

Place bread cubes in a large mixing bowl, set aside.

Beat eggs and place in another large bowl.

Grease a large rectangular Pyrex dish with melted butter.

Instructions

Add all 3 milks to your big bowl with beaten eggs; Stir.

Add vanilla and lemon extracts, the three spices and sugars; Stir liquid until sugars dissolve and all ingredients are mixed well. Taste for desired sweetness.

Pour ¾ stick melted butter into the liquid. Stir.  Pour liquid over ½ of the bread pieces; Use a spatula to get all liquid solution out of bowl.

Push bread down in the solution and let bread soak for about 10 minutes; Then, stir all the ingredients together (I like to have two dimensions of soaked bread:  The first dimension is more dissolved and become more mushy and will make a more custardy consistency; and the 2nd layer of bread is not as dissolved).

Add the other half of the bread to the solution; Push down in the solution; taste for desired sweetness and spicy taste; Add more milk or spices and/or sugar here.

Add raisins (or other fruits: Peaches, Apples, Pears, Fruit Cocktail, optional) and stir again. Put ingredients in a large greased Pyrex dish; Sprinkle ½ tablespoon nutmeg and the other spices over the top; Put in the middle of the preheated oven–on middle rack.

Cook 1 hour to 1 hour & 20 minutes (During the cooking process, the last bread pieces may come up out of the juice, take spoon to push back down into juice and continue to bake.

Stick a knife into the center to see if it’s done after 45 minutes; If the knife comes out with residue, then the pudding is not done yet, but if it comes out clean, the pudding is done.

When done, turn oven off and let the Bread Pudding set in the oven for another 10 to 15 minutes to finish setting.

Tip:  Add foil on top if bread pudding gets brown before it gets all the way done inside—Oven temperature variations may affect this–whether oven is gas or electric) SERVE WARM WITH SOME OF HATTIE’S RUM BUTTER HONEY GLAZE DRIZZLED ON TOP (See Hattie’s Sauces) or HATTIE’S HOMEMADE VANILLA ICE CREAM.

VARIATIONS:  Instead of Raisins (or in addition to), add a cup of chocolate chips or a can crushed pineapples (if you include the juice, reduce the milk so as not to be too loose).

►Hattie’s Rum Butter Honey Glaze/Sauce: 

½ cup honey

½ stick melted butter

1 cup confectioners sugar

2 tablespoons Rum Extract or I tablespoon Rum liquor

1 teaspoon lemon extract or lemon juice

2 tablespoons milk

A dash of sea salt

Instructions:

Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat.

Mix Confectioners sugar with the milk

Pour sugar & milk mixture into the melted butter.

Bring to near boil; Stir continuously; turn heat down to low.

Add in the honey; Stir; Add lemon extract or juice and rum extract or rum liquor; Stir until smooth (Add more milk if too thick; or more confectioners sugar if too loose);

Drizzle on top of warm Bread Pudding, ENJOY!!