Provençal Inspired Bread Pudding

Hello!  I have missed blogging so very much and I am so happy to be back at it.  My blogging hiatus was a very busy time for me.  Now that I am back to blogging I am so happy to be returning with a a few things that I am so proud of.  Look for an awesome giveaway next week as well as a great table scape later this week.

Today, I am sharing one of my favorite recipes.  I made this recipe up a few years so I could use an extra log of goat cheese.  It has been a family favorite ever since.  The board of ingredients is pretty simple and the result is a beautiful dish. 

Start by adding a drizzle of olive oil to a non stick pan over medium heat.  Add the onions and salt.  Cook the onions until they begin to caramelize.  You are looking for a hint of brown along the edges of the onions.  I did not get a picture of the finished product.  When the onions are cooked, remove them from the pan so they can begin cooling off.  If you added hot onions to an egg mixture you would get lumps of scrambled eggs.   

Next, add your eggs to a large mixing bowl.  You are going to need lots of room to stir once you get all the ingredients in the bowl, so plan ahead. 

Whisk the eggs until they are well mixed. 

Add the milk.

Add a pinch of salt and a few grinds of fresh cracked pepper.

Mix everything together .

Now let's get some flavorful ingredients ready to add to the egg mixture.  Let's start with sun dried tomatoes.  I love them in this bread pudding.  What a bright pop of flavor these add to the bread pudding.




They need to be chopped into smaller pieces.  I cut the tomatoes into strips and then cut the strips into thirds, but you can leave them in larger chunks if you would like.

Frozen chopped spinach or some fresh, chopped spinach works for this recipe.  The spinach gives the recipe some great color and makes the recipe a bit healthier. 

Add the grated Fontina Cheese, chopped sun dried tomatoes, spinach, and cooled onions to the egg mixture.

Next, cut the dried bread into cubes and add them to the bowl.

I recommend mixing it all up with your hands.  Just make sure you get it well mixed and that the bread is well coated with the egg mixture.  Let it sit on the counter for a few minutes so the bread can soak in the wet egg mixture.  This is an important step.




While the bread soaks up the egg mixture, let's get the baking dish ready to go.  You can use a non stick spray, but I hate to use that on my good baking dishes.  I am just using a drizzle of olive oil and spreading it around with a silicon brush or a pastry brush.

All set to go.

Now, one last step before baking.  The goat cheese needs to be crumbled up to go into the bread pudding. 

I like baked bites of the cheese to be found through out the pudding.  If that does not sound good to you, crumble it up into smaller bits. 

Into the bowl of pudding to get mixed in.

Everything goes into the baking dish.  I sort of poke around to make sure the goat cheese is evenly distributed throughout the pudding. 

Bake for 35 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. 

Look for the chicken recipe next week.  For now, it's time to eat.  Enjoy!

Provençal Inspired Bread Pudding

Ingredients:

8 Large Eggs
1 ½ Cup Whole Milk
¼ Cup Coarsely Chopped Sun Dried Tomatoes
1 Large Onion Coarsely Chopped
10 Oz. Frozen Chopped Spinach, Thawed & Well Drained
1 Cup Shredded Fontina Cheese
1 Pound Loaf of Stale Bread Cut into Cubes
2 Oz. Chevre Goat Cheese
1 Teaspoon Salt
½ Teaspoon Pepper
Olive Oil

Instructions:

1. In medium skillet over medium heat add 2 Tablespoons olive oil and onion. Saute til it begins to caramelize. Set onions aside to cool.
2. In large bowl add eggs, milk, salt, and pepper. Whisk to combine. Add Fontina cheese, sun dried tomatoes, cooled onions and spinach. Mix with a wooden spoon.
3. Add bread cubes and mix. Let sit for a half an hour for bread to absorb egg and milk mixture.
4. Brush a 9 X 13 pan with olive oil.
5. Add crumbled goat cheese to bread and egg mixture.  Mix and add to the prepared baking dish.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.
7. Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes. Serve with a salade dressed with a lemon and Parmesan vinaigrette. Serves 6 as an entree, 10-12 as a side. Enjoy.

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