I never expected to receive a return phone call. I had been agonizing over how I was going to make the bread pudding, wavering between baking it with fruit or without? Did Tartine really not add any fruit to the bread pudding while it baked? Their cookbook says without, but my memory told me bits of warm peaches had dotted the pudding throughout. I needed affirmation before proceeding, and so I called Tartine. I left a message explaining I had read the preface to the brioche bread pudding recipe in their cookbook, which notes that they serve their bread pudding with seasonal fruit lightly sautéed in butter and heated in a caramel sauce. Was this accurate? I asked. Or did Tartine sometimes bake the fruit right in with the custard and brioche? I left my number, hung up the phone, accepting I would likely have to make the decision on my own. Not so. Later that day, I turned on my phone to find a message from Suzanne, a lovely Tartine employee. She confirmed exactly what the cookbook says: Tartine indeed bakes the bread pudding without any fruit in it. They do in fact warm a seasonal fruit of choice — peaches, berries, apples, pears — in a caramel sauce, the recipe for which I have included below. Moreover, she noted, when they remove the pans of bread pudding from the oven, they poke holes in it to let steam out and to create space, and then they pour the warm fruit in caramel sauce over top. Brilliant! Thank you, Suzanne. PS: Easy, No-Knead Brioche Loaf Recipe
Two Tips for Excellent Bread Pudding Every Time
How to Make Brioche Bread Pudding
First, gather your ingredients:
You need about six 1-inch thick slices (about 400 grams) of brioche bread:
Transfer them to a sheet pan and toast at 325ºF for about 15 minutes or until lightly golden.
Let cool briefly:
Cut into cubes:
Transfer to a buttered 9×13-inch pan:
Make the custard by whisking together egg yolks, milk, sugar, salt, and vanilla:
Pour this custard over the cubes of bread and let stand for 30 minutes:
Transfer to the oven and bake for 45 minutes.
While the bread pudding rests, sauté your choice of fruit in a little bit of butter:
Add caramel sauce (recipe below):
Pour over the warm bread pudding and serve:
Also delicious with fresh peaches:
No reviews The keys I think to having success with this recipe include:
Weighing the bread. If you use roughly 394 grams of bread, you will have a beautifully textured, not-too-bready bread pudding. Using egg yolks only. Egg yolks create a custard not unlike crème brulée and make for an especially delicious bread pudding. That said, if you don’t feel like separating the yolks from the whites, it is delicious with whole eggs as well. Tartine’s original recipe calls for whole eggs. I use yolks only in Bread Toast Crumbs.
Notes:
If you have leftover bread pudding, chill it, slice it, and fry it as you would French toast. Alternatively: simply cut it into squares and warm it in the oven. My children love it with maple syrup — it truly tastes like the best French toast ever. This recipe works equally well with croissants, chocolate-filled croissants, challah or panettone. Use a good-sized pan when preparing the caramel. When the hot cream is added, the caramel will boil furiously at first, increasing dramatically in volume.
