Savoury bread and butter pudding

If it encourages you to make it, think of this as a cheat’s soufflé. I first tried it at a workshop Kate de Syllas helped Sustain’s Ethical Eats project team to run in summer 2013.

Kate suggests using fresh seasonal produce (leeks with wholegrain mustard or slow-roast tomatoes with basil, for example) or leftover cooked meats.

Ingredients

200ml milk
200ml cream (single or double)
1 or 2 garlic cloves, whole or sliced
75g butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
1 large loaf of any plain/savoury Real Bread, sliced
100g smoked streaky bacon or pancetta, chopped into small pieces*
10–15 asparagus spears (when locally in season)*
200g grated Gruyère (or other hard cheese)*
100g Parmesan cheese*
3 eggs
sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper

*This can be swapped for something else that's in season, leftover or you otherwise have to hand. 

Method

Bring the milk, cream and garlic to a simmer in a saucepan. Remove from the heat and leave to infuse for 20 minutes or until just warm.

Meanwhile, grease a large, fairly deep, ovenproof dish. Butter the bread slices and arrange half of them in the bottom of the dish. Lay the bacon and asparagus (or your choice of seasonal produce / leftovers) over the bread and scatter with about half of the cheese. Lay the rest of the buttered bread slices on top.

Whisk the eggs with the warm milk mixture, a pinch of salt and a few twists of black pepper. Pour this over the bread and scatter the rest of the cheese on top. Leave to stand for about 20 minutes for the bread to soak up some of the milk while you heat the oven to 150°C/130°C fan/300°F/gas 2.

Bake the pudding for about 35 minutes, or until the egg mixture is set and the pudding has taken on a golden colour. Serve either warm or cold.

About the baker (2016)

Kate de Syllas spent two decades cooking, growing, talking and sometimes even working in kitchens, gardens, charities and social enterprises in east London. She is now the owner-chef at Hantverk & Found in Margate, Kent. She cooks sustainable seafood and loves leftovers and Real Bread.

Recipe text © Kate de Syllas.

Taken from Slow Dough: Real Bread by Chris Young, published by Nourish Books.

Reproduction prohibited without written agreement of the copyright holder.

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