Chef's Table Recipe: Mulberry and Pecan Bread Pudding

Try this surprisingly light dessert

ByABC News
October 3, 2008, 4:43 PM

Dec 12, 2008 — -- Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the warm milk to the melted butter. Stir the sugar into the milk mixture until it dissolves, about 2-3 minutes. Lightly whisk the eggs together and then stir into the milk mixture, whisking constantly, making sure that the mixture is not hot enough to cook the eggs. Stir in vanilla extract and remove from heat.

Place the cubed bread in a large bowl, pour the custard over the cubes and gently toss. Allow the bread to sit at least three hours or overnight in the refrigerator.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Transfer the bread mixture into a buttered baking dish and spread out evenly; do not pack down. Bake for 15 minutes until the top is golden brown; and then cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes more. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly.

To make the crème Anglaise, whisk the egg yolks with half of the sugar until the mixture is pale yellow and forms a ribbon when lifted with the wisk. Heat the milk, heavy cream, and vanilla bean and seeds together until little bubbles form on the side of the pot. Add about half of the hot milk mixture to the egg mixture a little at a time to prevent the eggs from scrambling. Then pour the egg-milk mixture into the pot of remaining milk and cook, stirring constantly until thickened, about 8 minutes. If the sauce seems to be getting too hot, remove from the heat for a moment and stir. The sauce is thick enough when it coats the back of a spoon. Immediately pour the mixture through a strainer into a bowl set in an ice bath to cool.