Bread Pudding with Caramel Sauce

Bread Pudding...those 2 words conjure up memories from my childhood that just give me that warm, fuzzy feeling!! My mom would always make this for us as kids. We would come home to find it still warm, waiting for us on the kitchen counter. My favorite part back then, and still today, is the top crispy top layer, which always seemed to be the sweetest!!

Growing up we didn't have a lot, but my mom always managed to have simple but delectable desserts for almost every meal. I think that had to do with my dad's love of sweets. If dad ain't happy, ain't nobody happy!!

I now make this for my kids, but mine is a more tweaked version, with homemade caramel sauce and whipped cream on the side, and I am sure WAY more calories!! The recipe has changed, but the fuzzy feeling is still the same.

So now as I sit with the Bread Pudding in the oven, the kids are asking in the background, "Mommmmm...are you making caramel sauce to go with that"??? I holler back, "Nooo......not today". I love to play with their minds....lol. Then I yell back, "Of course I am making caramel sauce"!!! Woohooo, I hear them say. Kids....such simple things sometimes makes them happy. I can totally relate.

Bread Pudding
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10 slices of thick white bread (I use D'Italiano), cubed
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
4 eggs, beaten
1 cup of coffee cream (I always add an extra splash)
1 cup of milk
3/4 cup white sugar
sprinkling of cinnamon, to your taste
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put cubed bread in a greased 11 x 9 pan. Drizzle melted butter over top.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine eggs, milk, coffee cream, sugar, cinnamon and vanilla. Beat until well mixed, then pour over bread in pan. Let pan stand a few minutes to absorb into bread.

Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes or until light golden brown, and knife comes out clean when inserted in center of pudding.

**Just a note: I sometimes mix it up a bit and leave out some of the bread, and add in cinnamon rolls(OMG!), timbits (TDF!!), rolls, croissants, etc. Use your imagination!

Serve warm with caramel sauce and whipped cream!! Enjoy!

Caramel Sauce
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OK...here is the deal...if you went through all the trouble to make the bread pudding, you cannot, I repeat CANNOT eat it without the Caramel Sauce. It takes less than 5 minutes, from start to finish, and it makes this simple dessert the Pièce de Resistance!!

1 1/4 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup butter (use real, baby, real!)
1/2 cup of whipping cream or coffee cream

Whisk brown sugar and butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat until butter melts. Whisk in cream and stir until sugar dissolves and sauce is smooth, about 3 minutes.

That's it!! Indulge!