Cinnamon Bread Pudding with Cranberry-Raisin Sauce
Pungent and aromatic cinnamon perfumes this bread pudding and sweet-tart sauce. The sauce, made with cranberries and golden raisins, gets a toasty flavor from mustard seeds and a touch of heat from chile peppers.
From EatingWell: November/December 2010
Yield: 8 servings
Active Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 1 1/4 hours
Ingredients
Bread Pudding
- 8 slices slightly dry whole-grain bread, crusts trimmed, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
- 1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup golden raisins
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 cups low-fat milk
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Sauce
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 1 teaspoon black, brown or yellow mustard seeds
- 2-3 dried red Thai or cayenne chiles, such as chile de arbol, stemmed
- 1 cup cranberries, fresh or frozen (no need to thaw), sliced in half
- 1/2 cup golden raisins
- 1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup water
Preparation
- To prepare pudding: Preheat oven to 350ºF. Coat an 8-inch-square baking dish with cooking spray.
- Combine bread, 1/2 cup brown sugar, raisins, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, nutmeg, milk, eggs and vanilla in a large bowl. Allow the bread cubes to swell a bit and absorb the liquid, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.
- Transfer the bread mixture to the prepared baking dish. Place the dish in a larger baking pan filled halfway with hot tap water. Place together in the oven. Bake until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Remove the baking dish from the water bath and let stand for about 15 minutes.
- To prepare sauce: Heat oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add mustard seeds, cover, and cook until the seeds stop popping (not unlike popcorn), 30 seconds to 1 minute. Stir in chiles to taste and cook until blackened and smoky, about 30 seconds.
- Add cranberries and raisins. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the raisins are plump, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and cook, stirring, so the sugar melts, about 30 seconds. Pour in water and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the sauce turns syrupy-thick, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the chiles.
- Slice the pudding into 8 pieces and spoon some sauce over each. Serve immediately.
- Make Ahead Tip: Cover and refrigerate the sauce (Steps 4-5) for up to 1 day. Reheat before serving; thin with a little water, if desired.
Nutrition Per serving:
278 calories; 5 g fat (1 g sat, 2 g mono); 56 mg cholesterol; 52 g carbohydrates; 20 g added sugars; 8 g protein; 4 g fiber; 163 mg sodium; 350 mg potassium.
Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin A (18% daily value), Calcium (15% dv).
4 Carbohydrate Serving
Exchanges: 1 starch, 1 fruit, 1 carbohydrate (other), 1 fat