Recipe: Bread Pudding from Bette's Diner

Recipe

Bread Pudding from Bette's Diner

Bette's Diner in Berkeley has a take-out shop right next door. One very special offering has always been the soft, scintillating, always warm bread pudding, rich with eggs and butter. Angel that she is, Bette worked with me to come up with this lower-fat version.

Makes 8 servings

2 loaves stale eggless white bread, crusts removed,
cut into 1-1/2-inch-cube (about 12 cups)
1 cup golden raisins
1 egg
2 egg whites
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 cups nonfat milk

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly coat an oval or rectangular 3-quart baking dish with oil. Layer the bottom of the dish with half the bread. Sprinkle the raisins over the bread. Layer the remaining bread over the raisins.

In a large bowl, whisk the egg, egg whites, and olive oil together. Whisk in the sugar, then the nutmeg, vanilla, and milk until blended.

Pour the milk mixture over the bread and press down on the top gently with your hand. The milk mixture should come just to the top of the bread; add more milk, if necessary. Cover the dish with aluminum foil, sealing the edges and making a dome to keep the foil from sticking to the bread.

Place the dish in a larger baking pan. Fill the larger pan with hot water to within I inch of the top of the baking dish. Bake for 1 hour and 45 minutes, or until the pudding is very lightly browned and slightly crisped. Uncover and let cool in the baking dish. Serve warm.

Recipe from:
Raising Low-Fat Kids in a High-Fat World
Judith Shaw
Chronicle Books
$14.95 / paperback
ISBN: 0-8118-1441-6
Reprinted by permission.