New Year's "Challenge" Accepted: Creole Bread Pudding Soufflé

Amy writes:

2014 was a crap year and I'm glad it's over. It started with the death of a good friend of ours and didn't ever really improve that much. There were plenty of problems, lots of losses, and several stresses. I know I could have, should have, turned all that negative energy into creative cooking but I didn't. I stopped caring what, or even if, we ate. We did a lot of heat-n-eat and take-out. I stopped cooking, and I stopped writing about it. 

I, nay we, are in a better place now. Not perfect but better. And I've realized how much I've missed food. I started this blog on New Year's Day 2008 and I'm hereby reviving it today, exactly 7 years later.  I'll admit there have been times when it seemed like work and it added stress to our lives. I'm not going to let that happen again. I'm going to let it be what I meant it to be from the beginning - an online compendium of our recipes, a journal of the time we share in the kitchen, and a fun way to improve my own cooking, writing, and photography. 

What better way to restart than with a seeming challenge from the magazine Louisiana Cooking. The cover shot? "Make it at home: Commander's Palace  Creole Bread Pudding Soufflé." Yeah, I know what you're thinking - a dessert. And a dessert so famous there's an employee at that restaurant who makes only these. Full time. Challenge accepted. 

So on New Year's Eve, A Couple in the Kitchen spent the evening exactly there. We set a menu, we shopped, we prepped, we chopped, we cooked, we enjoyed, and yes, we even cleaned. And the challenging dessert? Creole bread pudding soufflé? The best dessert we've ever made. For rillz. Happy 2015!!! We are happy to be back. 

Creole Bread Pudding Soufflé 

(Adapted for two from Louisiana Cooking November/December 2014)

Ingredients:

Pudding and soufflé: 

Butter for greasing pan and soufflé dishes

1/2 cup sugar, divided

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Dash nutmeg

1 large egg

1/3 cup heavy whipping cream

1/3 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups French bread, cut into 1-inch cubes

1/4 cup raisins

3 large egg whites, at room temperature

1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

Whiskey sauce: 

1/4 tablespoon cornstarch

1/2 tablespoon water

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream 

1 1/2 tablespoons sugar

1/8 cup bourbon 

Make bread pudding: Preheat oven to 350. Grease a small baking pan with butter. In a medium bowl, combine 1/4 cup sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Add egg and whisk until smooth; add cream and vanilla and stir to combine. Add bread cubes, and let soak until mixture is absorbed. Scatter raisins into prepared pan and top with bread mixture. Bake until golden brown and firm, about 25 minutes. Let cool. 

Make whiskey sauce: In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and water. Bring cream to a boil In a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in cornstarch mixture and return to a boil while continuing to whisk. Let simmer a few seconds meow and remove from heat. Stir in sugar and bourbon and cool to room temperature. 

Make soufflé: Grease 2 soufflé dishes with butter and set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat egg whites and cream of tartar at high speed until foamy. Slowly add remaining 1/4 cup sugar and continue beating until meringue is shiny and thick with stiff peaks. 

Assemble: Crumble half of bread pudding into a bowl. Gently fold in 1/4 of meringue. Add a portion of this into each prepared ramekin. Crumble the remaining bread pudding into the bowl and fold in the rest of the meringue. Top the soufflés with this mixture. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Poke a hole in the top of each soufflé and pour in whiskey sauce. Serve immediately. 

Cinnamon Swirl Bread Pudding

Perhaps it was the news about Pascal's Manale, or looking at that drool-worthy photo of BBQ Shrimp, but once again, Amy finds herself hankering for some New Orleans cuisine. A few-days old, untouched loaf of cinnamon swirl bread got us thinking...how about some bread pudding?

We finally broke out a piece of the Temp-tations Traditions baking set Amy's parents bought us for Christmas and set about making this traditional Southern dessert, only we made it for breakfast. Why not? It has eggs, and milk, and cinnamon bread, and well, we don't have to justify ourselves to you, now do we?

First, we have to say, the bakeware did an amazing job. After devouring our pieces, then divvying up the rest to the neighbors, the empty pan looked already washed. A quick rinse and wipe was all it needed. Secondly,  well, yum. It was scrumptious, particularly with a little swirl of our bourbon sauce over the top. It's five o'clock somewhere.

It seems so decadent, but cinnamon has a ton of health benefits also. Here is a great article by Helen Nicols where she extols the virtues of this super-spice!

Go buy a small loaf of good cinnamon bread and ignore it for a few days. Then come back and try out this classic Big Easy recipe. You won't be sorry!

Cinnamon Swirl Bread Pudding

Ingredients:

1 small loaf stale cinnamon swirl bread, cut into cubes

2 cups milk

5 large eggs

1 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon demerara, turbinado or brown sugar

1 tablespoon butter, cut into small pieces

cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350. Place bread cubes in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs and sugar until well combined. Add the vanilla extract and pour mixture over the bread. Gently fold the bread cubes to ensure all the bread is covered in the egg mixture. Allow to sit for at least 15 minutes, stirring occasionally so all bread is well soaked. Spray a 13X9 baking pan with cooking spray and pour bread into the dish. Sprinkle with demerara sugar and dot with butter. Bake for 45 minutes, until golden brown and set.

Bourbon Sauce

Ingredients:

1 cup granulated sugar

3/4 stick unsalted butter

1 egg, beaten

1/4 cup bourbon

Mix together the sugar, butter and beaten egg in a medium saucepan over low heat. Stir until well combined, taking care that the egg does not cook. Remove from heat once the sugar is melted. Stir in the bourbon and serve warm over the bread pudding.

Bacon, Egg and Cheese Bread Pudding

We created this amazing brunch concoction over Christmas break, when we had lots of time to rest, relax and enjoy time in the kitchen. Its inspiration, in fact, was a Christmas gift from Amy's bestie Karen - a piece of  "Temp-tations" cookware. Isn't it gorgeous? Not only is it non-stick, but it can go straight from the  fridge to the oven to the table. We especially love the pretty glass trivet (also serves as a lid!) and the iron rack that come with it, making it so very table-ready. 

Since Karen is in New Orleans, we wanted to make something inspired by the Big Easy. After plenty of consideration and exchanging various ideas, the two of us finally came up with this: Bacon, Egg and Cheese Bread Pudding, a play on the ubiquitous sandwich. This savory bread pudding is fluffy and custardy, with salty and smoky bites of bacon and tangy cheese. Loved it, and it was perfect for our new cookware! Perhaps we'll make it again today, since we have a SNOW DAY! 

Bacon, Egg and Cheese Bread Pudding

Ingredients:

1 cup milk

1/2 cup heavy cream

3 large eggs

4 slices bacon

1 shallot, minced

5 cups cubed day-old French bread

4 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated

1 1/2 tablespoons dried parsley

kosher salt and ground white pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 and spray the baking dish with cooking spray. Whisk together milk, cream, eggs, salt and white pepper in a large bowl; set aside. Cook bacon until crisp, remove from pan and drain on paper towels, then chop into bite-sized pieces. Cook shallot in bacon fat over medium heat until golden, only about one minute. Add bacon, bread, cheese, cooked shallots and dried parsley into custard mixture so that all bread is covered; allow to soak for about 1/2 hour. Transfer mixture into baking dish and cover with foil. Bake for 30 minutes, then remove foil and bake for additional 10 minutes or until golden brown.

Hurricane Potluck (with recipe for Coco-Bread Pudding)

Have we ever mentioned how much we love our neighbors/neighborhood? It was during an early-in-the-morning-mini-crisis (tree meets transformer) years ago that we first bonded over coffee in sweats, and we've never looked back. Our core group is about five families, but there are several on the fringe that who can always be counted on to join in. We have had progressive dinners, Halloween "trick or shots" after the kids have gotten their treats, barbecues, birthday parties, and much more. Oh, we should say as a matter of course, our annual Mardi Gras Madness could never happen without the help and support of the 'hood.

This weekend, when Hurricane Sandy was predicted to be heading our way, and the neighborhood could be facing another crisis, we picked up some extra groceries (including a six-pound pork shoulder) along with the other necessary supplies. By Monday, school was called off, "non-essential" state employees were told to stay home, and the highways were closed for travel. The state was bunkering down, and with it, our neighborhood. Amy's sister, her husband, and their daughter came over (since we have a generator), and we joined with two of the "core" neighborhood families in a potluck dinner. As the rain lashed the streets and the wind howled through the trees, we shared a communal meal by the light of the tv news, checking in on friends and family, and trying to keep our minds off the storm.

Admittedly, it was an amazing dinner and an all-around good time. We brought a pound of steamed shrimp for an appetizer, porchetta seasoned with garlic and rosemary surrounded by roasted root vegetables (see here for that blog post/recipe), chunky mashed red potatoes, and a bread pudding made with Brazilian coco-bread (recipe below). When we arrived at the W's, we were greeted with pigs in a blanket, deviled eggs, sliced ham, pureed butternut squash, dirty rice, and ooey-gooey brownies. Some fall-themed brews (including Samuel Adams Oktoberfest) and a couple of bottles of wine rounded out the meal. Our niece E had a great time hanging out with the F's daughter N, as they always do, and even the W's dogs got some playtime in.

We know full well how lucky we are. Other than a few fallen branches, we remained unscathed, with power, and without loss of provisions or property. Our thoughts and prayers go out to those who weren't as lucky. And we hope that there are plenty of other neighborhoods in the world just like ours.

Coco-Bread Pudding

Ingredients:

3 cups milk

1/2 stick unsalted butter

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon apple pie spice

pinch of kosher salt

8 slices coco-bread, broken into bite-sized pieces

3 eggs, lightly beaten

Trader Joe's Sugar, Chocolate, Coffee Bean Spice Grinder

Boxed Goodes Bitter Sweets

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the milk, butter, sugar, apple pie spice and salt. Heat until butter melts. Grease a baking dish with cooking spray, then pour in the milk mixture. Add the bread pieces and allow to soak for five minutes. Pour in the beaten eggs and stir gently to combine. Sprinkle top with the Trader Joe's or Boxed Goodes grinders we used or just with an additional tablespoon of sugar. Place baking dish into a larger baking dish and fill it with hot water about half way up. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the pudding has set. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream.