What better way to celebrate this moment than with a childhood favorite, bread pudding! It took me a while to fathom that bread puddings are usually baked in the United States since my mother always steamed them whenever she made them at home and this is one dish she made often. I love both versions for different reasons. The American version, has a delicious crispy crust while the steamed version is soft and comforting. No matter what you look at it, bread puddings are one of the tastiest ways to use up leftover bread. I think it’s the simplicity that makes it so appealing, a few ingredients with endless possibilities. Mom always uses vanilla extract and raisins and slices of milk bread. Bread pudding is breakfast converted to dessert and it’s all about comfort. This version is infused with dried chamomile flowers and long black pepper (which look like little pine cones). There’s a creamy sauce that’s infused with the spices and a sneaky helping of raisins in that give a burst of sweetness in each and every bite. This is a very simple recipe and you could modify and bake it if you wanted to. I use the bundt pan to steam the pudding and give it a more cake like shape which makes it a little fancier but again it’s all up to you. Make it the way you want to and make sure to enjoy it! A couple of kitchen notes that you might find useful when preparing this pudding;

My recipe is loosely adapted from Mark Bittman’s recipe in the New York Times. His recipe is baked while this is steamed.  If you can’t find long black pepper, you can easily sub 1/4 teaspoon of coarsely ground black pepper for the pudding and sauce, each.  I use this bundt cake pan which is also a great pudding basin and you can order the cooling rack and steamer rack to go with it. I just use the cooling rack as the steamer rack all the time and it works perfectly. Another option is to use an English pudding basin like one of those pretty Mason Cash bowls but this bundt pan and it’s lid remove all the extra work from making a good seal to prevent water from entering the pan.  I don’t use too much sugar in this recipe, as challah is pretty sweet to begin with and too much sugar masks the flavor of the chamomile and black pepper.

chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding yields: 6 to 8 servings ingredients for the bread pudding 2 cups whole milk 2 tablespoons unsalted butter + extra for greasing the pan 1/4 cup dried chamomile flowers 4 long black peppercorns, coarsely crushed 4 tablespoons sugar 6 cups challah bread cut into 2 inch cubes (an entire challah loaf) 2 large eggs 4 tablespoons raisins or sultanas for the sauce 1 1/2 cups whole milk 2 tablespoons dried chamomile flowers 2 long black peppercorns, coarsely crushed 3 tablespoons sugar 2 tablespoons water 2 tablespoons cornstarch for the bread pudding

  1. Place the milk, butter, chamomile, peppercorns and sugar in a thick bottomed medium-sized saucepan. Heat on medium-low heat stirring occasionally for about 2 minutes until the butter melts, then increase heat to medium-high and bring the contents to boil stirring constantly. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature. Once cooled strain the liquid and discard the solids using a fine mesh sieve.
  2. While the milk is cooling, grease a 2 quart bundt pan with a little butter.  Then place a layer of challah cubes and sprinkle a tablespoon of the raisins. Add another layer of bread and sprinkle the raisins. Repeat until you reach the top. 
  3. Lightly whisk the eggs into the cooled and strained milk mixture. Pour this liquid over the bread in the bundt pan. Cover the bundt pan with its lid and allow to sit for 10 minutes. Place a plate or a round cooling rack into a large stockpot,  place the sealed bundt pan on top of the plate/rack. Pour enough tap water (at room temperature) to about 1 inch less than the height of the bundt pan. Place a heavy weight such as a bowl or plate over the bundt pan, cover the stockpot with a lid and heat the stockpot on medium-high heat until the water begins to boil. Continue to boil for another 1 minute and remove from stove. Allow the bundt pan to stay in the stockpot for another 5 minutes before removing from the stockpot. Remove the lid and run a butterknife between the edges of the pan and the pudding. Invert the bundt pan over a serving plate and allow to sit for 10 minutes to release. (If it doesn’t release using the flat end of the butter knife to loosen the sides).  To prepare the sauce
  4. Place the milk, chamomile, peppercorns, and sugar in a medium-sized thick bottomed saucepan. Heat on medium-high, stirring occasionally until the milk just starts to boil. In the meantime, make a slurry of the water and cornstarch in a small mixing bowl. Vigorously whisk the cornstarch slurry into boiling milk and continue to cook until it thickens. Remove the saucepan from the stove and strain the solids and discard the solids using a fine mesh sieve. Pour about 1/2 cup of this warm sauce over the pudding just before serving with a little extra on the side.  Comment * Name * Email * Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Δ

chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 63chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 20chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 57chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 19chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 91chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 36chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 13chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 67chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 8chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 82chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 90chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 36chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 9chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 14chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 72chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 52chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 64chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 95chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 62chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 87chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 68chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 65chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 25chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 74chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 81chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 64chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 79chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 38chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 68chamomile and long black pepper steamed bread pudding Nik Sharma Cooks - 24