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Recipe Detail Page
Pulla Bread Pudding with Spiced-Rum Caramel Sauce
Holiday 2006
This dessert elevates old-fashioned bread pudding into holiday fare. Pulla is festive Finnish egg bread, slightly sweet and redolent of cardamom. Spiced rum has a hit of rich vanilla with a hint of citrus and allspice complementing both the cardamom in the bread and the smooth caramel taste of dulce de leche.
Serves 10 to 12
Pudding
8 cups (1 L) 1-inch (2.5-cm) cubes of pulla or challah bread
4 eggs
1/3 to 2/3 cups (75 to150 mL) granulated sugar
1 quart (1 L) 18% cream
¼ cup (150 mL) spiced rum
¼ tsp (1 mL) salt
2 tbsp (25 mL) butter, softened
Sauce
1¼ cups (300 mL) dulce de leche
¼ cup (50 mL) spiced rum
1. Taste pulla; if fairly sweet, use the lesser amount of sugar. (If using challah or other egg bread, add a generous pinch of ground cardamom to the egg mixture and use the greater amount of sugar.) In a very large bowl, beat eggs lightly; beat in sugar and then cream, rum and salt until combined.
2. Use butter to generously coat a 9 x 13-inch (3-L) baking dish; add bread cubes. Pour in egg mixture, pushing bread into egg mixture so all pieces are coated. Let soak while preheating oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Push bread into egg mixture again. Bake in centre of preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes or until lightly browned around edges. Set on a rack; cool until warm.
3. Meanwhile, stir dulce de leche in a small bowl until smooth. Gradually add rum, stirring well after each addition until smooth. When ready to serve, heat sauce for 30 to 60 seconds in the microwave or in a saucepan over low heat until just warmed. If sauce is too thick, stir in 1 tbsp (15 mL) water. (If made ahead, sauce becomes quite thick when refrigerated so bring to room temperature before using or warm for a few seconds in the microwave.)
4. To serve, scoop warm bread pudding into warmed serving dishes. Top with a drizzle of sauce; serve right away.
Serves 10 to 12
Dulce de Leche
This utterly delicious thickened caramel requires only one ingredient and time. Because of this latter factor, make extra as dulce de leche keeps well in the refrigerator for a week or more, and can be frozen.
2 to 4 cans (300 mL each) sweetened condensed milk
Oven method
1. Preheat oven to 425ºF (200ºC).
2. Bring a kettleful of water to a boil. Remove labels and tops from cans. Cover each individual can top with foil, pressing firmly about halfway down outside of can. Place in a large flat-bottomed casserole dish. Pour boiling water into dish until ½-inch (1-cm) from tops of cans, thus creating a water bath. Cover with casserole lid. Bake 2 hours, without disturbing except to check water level occasionally; add more boiling water only if level drops drastically. After 2 hours, lift cans from water bath with tongs; cool on a rack with foil still in place. Then use or refrigerate up to a week or freeze. Cold dulce de leche is very thick so bring to room temperature before stirring thoroughly.
Each can makes 1¼ cups (300 mL)
Pressure Cooker Method
1. Remove labels and tops from cans. Cover each individual can top with foil, pressing down outside of can. Place on bottom of pressure cooker. Pour water into pan until ½-inch (1-cm) from tops of cans, thus creating a water bath. Cover and secure pressure cooker lid according to manufacturer's instructions. Bring to a boil over high heat. When hissing, depress the pressure valve. Lower heat so water is simmering and a low hiss of steam is audible. Simmer 45 minutes. Then remove cooker from heat and release pressure valve. Cool 10 to 20 minutes or until able to open cooker. Lift cans from water bath with tongs; cool on a rack with foil still in place. Then use or refrigerate up to a week or freeze. Cold dulce de leche is very thick so bring to room temperature before stirring thoroughly.
Each can makes 1¼ cups (300 mL)
