After making afternoon tea sandwiches, there are lots of scraps left over from the bread. Bread Pudding is usually what we make with these scraps. You can also make bread crumbs and croutons. Bread Pudding is quick and easy to make and disappears quickly. You don’t have to wait for scraps to make it; you can use stale bread, or even fresh bread. If you really want a decadent bread pudding, use challah bread, croissants, or a brioche. You’ll just have to work harder at the gym or do a little more of whatever exercises you do.

For this bread pudding recipe, we eyeballed the ingredients and you can do the same. It all depends on how much bread you have to work with. Just make sure the liquid covers the bread and you’ll be okay. The lovely red baking dishes from Martha Stewart were perfect for these individual bread puddings. They are the perfect size for gifts!

Bread Pudding

Serve this bread pudding with yogurt or ice cream, but it's good plain as well!

Ingredients

Left over stale bread, or bread scraps, or a whole loaf of your favorite bread
4 eggs
non-fat half and half
non-fat milk
zest from 2 lemons
1-1/2 cups of brown sugar
1 cup of chopped walnuts
1 cup of raisins
1 cup of chopped dates
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
Optional: 1 tablespoon Angostura bitters

Instructions

Cut up the bread in bite-size chunks and put in a large bowl
Beat the eggs and add the lemon zest
Add the sugar to the egg mixture and stir well
Pour egg mixture over the bread and mix well
Add the raisins, nuts and almonds
Pour a mixture of the half and half and milk until you cover the bread slices
Add the vanilla extract and Angostura bitters
Stir the mixture well and let bread sit in the liquid for about 5 minutes if you want a softer texture, or bake right away if you want it chunky
Butter small baking pans or a large pan and bake for 45 minutes – 1 hour
Stick a skewer or thin knife in the middle – if it comes out clean, it’s done