Pear Bread Pudding with Maine Blueberry Caramel - SHF #12

^S

ugar High Friday's here again, and the theme this month is custard! (For the uninitiated, Sugar High Friday is the high energy web event created by Jennifer,  the Domestic Goddess, to whom all  food bloggers must humbly pay homage every month with a sugary offering - just for the fun of it! This month our gracioius host for SHF is Elise of Simply Recipes.) Elise has posted a roundup of all the spectacular contributions -  CLICK HERE to see it.

I've been on a tear with savory bread puddings and savory flans lately (Tomato Bread Pudding, Tomato Flan, Roasted Tomato Bread Pudding), so all I have to do is shift gears, add some sugar and I'm in business...bread pudding is a form of custard, after all (since the basic recipe is eggs mixed with milk or cream, poured over bread pieces and baked until set) . 

Okay, what's in the kitchen that we can make into a sweet bread pudding? Madi, my granddaughter, was just here, so some leftovers of her favorite fruits are still hanging around the refrigerator, waiting to be used or tossed: pears and fresh Maine blueberries (which are, by the way the Official State Berry of Maine -- talk about LOCAL!). So, I guess I know what to do: pear bread pudding with blueberry caramel sauce...topped with vanilla ice cream, of course.

Makes 4 servings.

Pear Bread Pudding

1/2 loaf day-old country French bread
2 eggs
1 C milk
1/2 C sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp cognac
2 medium pears, peeled, poached, cooled, cored, chopped

Cut bread into sticks 1/4" x 1/4" x approx 1-1/2". If possible, cut so that each piece retains some crust on one end.
Stand bread sticks loosely in 4 buttered ramekins, crust ends up. There may be bread left over.
Beat eggs quickly with a fork and mix with milk,  sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, cognac and pears.
Spoon mixture into ramekins. Let puddings rest for 30 - 40 minutes.
Bake about 45 minutes in preheated 350º oven in boiling water bath to cover bottom half of ramekins. Tester should come out more-or-less dry.

Allow to cool 20 minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edge and then unmold. Serve immediately, with blueberry caramel sauce (below) and vanilla ice cream.

Blueberry Caramel Sauce

6 T sugar
2 T water
1 C blueberries, preferably the smaller wild variety
2 T cognac

Simmer sugar and water, stirring occasionally, until golden (about 5 minutes).
Add blueberries and cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes over medium low heat.
Stir in cognac, cook for another minute. Allow to cool a few minutes before serving.

Comments

[Ruth]

What an absolutely gorgeous looking dessert!!!!

[Nic]

Beautiful presentation, Stephen. I think that this was a great choice of ingredients, too.

[Nupur]

That looks too good! I need to invest in some ramekins and make this recipe..thanks for sharing.

[Paz]

I'm late with my comments here -- this looks delicious!

Paz

[keiko]

I'm not mad about bread pudding in general, but this looks really delicious!