While I’m a Prue fan, I was truly delighted when I found out Nigella Lawson would be stepping in as judge on Great British Baking Show. I’ve long been a fan on Nigella, watching her show on the early days of Food Network and whipping up her recipes at home. Her chocolate stout cake is a perennial favorite, so I was excited to see it introduced early on this season as a technical challenge.
A few episodes later, another Nigella recipe appeared as the technical challenge, but this is one I had never made before: bread and butter pudding. A classic British dessert, the older bakers were the most familiar with bread and butter pudding and performed the best in the challenge. Many of the younger bakers, lacking a recipe, couldn’t resist over-complicating things. But to my eye, it looked like it might actually be quite simple.
One look at Nigella’s recipe, and I was smitten. One bite, and I was in love. It’s simple, uses just a few ingredients that you likely have on hand, and is the best possible thing you can do with stale bread.
Credit: Simply Recipes / Laurel Randolph
Why You Should Make Nigella’s Bread and Butter Pudding
To make what Nigella calls her “much-loved traditional pud,” you just need about half a loaf of stale white bread, softened butter, eggs, sugar, vanilla, lemon zest, milk, and heavy cream. It comes together quickly and bakes up in just over 30 minutes. You can have a warm, comforting dessert in under an hour.
I love that this bread and butter pudding recipe is delicately sweet and gently flavored. Please don’t mistake it as bland. It’s just sweet enough, with a warm vanilla flavor and gentle notes of lemon and nutmeg. Nigella instructs the bakers to “not overwhelm it,” and it’s for good reason. Something about the simple but intoxicating flavor keeps you coming back for more. The textures are also very fun—crispy on top and “wobbly” in the center.
You can enjoy this bread pudding just 10 minutes after it emerges from the oven, and it is best eaten warm. If you want a bit more sweetness, you can serve it with a drizzle of golden syrup, and Nigella sometimes does, or a little maple syrup.
Credit: Simply Recipes / Laurel Randolph
How To Make Nigella’s Bread and Butter Pudding
This recipe was adapted from Nigella Lawson’s recipe on The Great British Bake-Off site. I’ve tweaked it for ease and for American kitchens.
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8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
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8 slices stale white bread
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Freshly ground nutmeg, optional
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4 teaspoons Demerara or cane sugar
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Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a 7×11, 8×12, or 2 1/2- to 3-quart baking dish with butter. The dish can be round, oval, square, or rectangular.
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Butter each piece of bread generously. Cut each into two or four triangles and arrange them in the baking dish (there’s no wrong way to do this).
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Add the granulated sugar and salt to a medium bowl. Add the lemon zest and rub it into the sugar with your fingertips. Add the eggs and whisk until foamy. Slowly add the milk while whisking, followed by the cream and vanilla.
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Pour the custard over the bread in the baking dish, pressing down any pieces that weren’t submerged. Let sit for 10 minutes and put a kettle on to boil. Sprinkle freshly-ground nutmeg over top (if using) and sprinkle with demerara or cane sugar.
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Place the dish in a larger pan and pour the boiling water around the baking dish until it reaches halfway up the sides. This will ensure the custard cooks gently and evenly in the oven.
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Bake until the top is crisp and the custard is just set and puffy, 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.
Read the original article on Simply Recipes