Bread and butter pudding recipe

Gary Rhodes
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It was really due to my mother that I found a love for cooking and to her I must thank. From a very young age I helped her in the kitchen and she taught me many of my first dishes – including one I am probably best known for, ‘Bread & Butter Pudding’, which I have to admit, was very different to the one I make now! But it gave me the inspiration to take something simple and old and turn it into something exceptional. Here’s my take on the classic, which is also perfect to make for your mum on Mother’s Day.

Ingredients

1 1.8 litre pudding dish/basin buttered
12 Medium slices white bread, crusts cut off
50 g Unsalted butter, softened
1 Vanilla pod or few drops of vanilla essence
400 ml Double cream
400 ml Milk
8 Egg yolks
175 g Caster sugar, plus extra for the caramelised topping
25 g Sultanas
25 g Raisins

Details

Cuisine: British
Recipe Type: Dessert
Difficulty: Easy
Preparation Time: 30 mins
Cooking Time: 30 mins
Serves: 6

Step-by-step

Butter the bread. Split the vanilla pod and place in a saucepan with the cream and milk and bring to the boil. While it is heating, whisk together the egg yolks and caster sugar in a bowl. Allow the cream mix to cool a little, then strain it on to the egg yolks, stirring all the time. You now have the custard.
Cut the bread into triangular quarters or halves, and arrange in the dish in three layers, sprinkling the fruit between two layers and leaving the top clear. Now pour over the warm custard, lightly pressing the bread to help it soak in, and leave it to stand for at least 20-30 minutes before cooking to ensure that the bread absorbs all the custard.
The pudding can be prepared to this stage several hours in advance and cooked when needed. Place the dish in a roasting tray three-quarters filled with warm water and bake for 20-30 minutes until the pudding begins to set. Don't overcook it or the custard will scramble. Remove the pudding from the water bath, sprinkle it liberally with caster sugar and glaze under the grill on a medium heat or with a gas gun to a crunchy golden finish.
When glazing, the sugar dissolves and caramelises, and you may find that the corners of the bread begin to burn. This helps the flavour, giving a bittersweet taste that mellows when it is eaten with the rich custard, which seeps out of the wonderful bread sponge when you cut into it.