Today, I am sharing my recipe for Apple Maple Bread Pudding with Maple Liqueur Sauce, an upscale old-fashioned comfort food.
Apples and maple are two compatible flavors and the maple liqueur I use in this recipe is produced by Deep Roots Distillery in Warren Grove, PEI. If this product is not available in your area, any brand of maple liqueur will work fine in this recipe.
Bread Puddings are old-fashioned custard-based desserts. Years ago, they were often made with stale bread to make good use of it and not waste bread. Some cube the bread, place it in a pan, and then pour the custard sauce over top. The method I use is different in that I roughly tear up the bread into bite-sized pieces, put it into a bowl, pour the milk and blend (cream) over it and let it sit for about 15-30 minutes before hand-crushing the mixture. I find this technique makes for a smoother textured pudding.
Many bread puddings (including my Blueberry Bread Pudding) are baked in a bain marie (water bath). Baking custard-based puddings in a bain marie is a slower and more even method of baking that direct oven heat. The bain marie provides insulation to the delicate custard as it bakes to ensure that the custard does not curdle and that the pudding stays moist. The water also generates steam and moisture in the oven which helps to keep the pudding moist, too.
To bake a pudding in a bain marie, two sizes of pans are needed – one to bake the pudding in and another larger pan that will accommodate the pudding pan with space around it, at least an inch or more on all sides. The exterior pan is filled with enough hot water that it comes up to about 1/2 way on the sides of the pan which holds the pudding.
I have baked this Apple Maple Bread Pudding, both in the traditional bain marie and without and, for this particular bread pudding, I did not notice any significant appreciable difference between the two methods of baking – both yielded a lovely moist, well baked pudding with no curdling of the custard in either baking.
I think it may depend on the ingredients in the pudding. For example, my tests showed that baking my Blueberry Bread Pudding in a bain marie yielded a better textured pudding than baking it without. I suspect it may be that the blueberries are a lot smaller than the sliced apples are in this pudding and thus exposed more of the custard base in the body of the pudding, thus increasing the possibility of curdling. My theory is that the higher the ratio of custard to add-ins (like blueberries, for example), the greater likelihood of the custard curdling if it isn’t baked in a bain marie. With the Apple Maple Bread Pudding, the larger pieces of apple take up more space in the custard leaving less of it exposed to potentially curdle. The apples also contribute moisture to the pudding thus keeping it moist as it bakes without the steam generated by baking it in a bain marie.
My best advice is to follow the baking instructions the recipe developer has given in whatever particular recipe you are using as, depending on the ingredients of a specific recipe, the recipe developer has found that the recipe may do better using a certain cooking or baking method, or may do as well using more that one method option. As the creator of this recipe and having tested the baking using the two different methods, I would say, for this particular recipe, you have a choice as to which baking method to use as either will yield a lovely textured, moist bread pudding.
As for choice of apple variety for this pudding, you will want to avoid soft flesh apples like the MacIntosh variety, for example. They are just too soft and, essentially, will likely become mushy while the pudding bakes, potentially creating a soggy pudding. It is important to choose apples that are firm and have good structure – i.e., those that will cook well but, at the same time, hold their shape.
You might consider apples like Cortlands, Spartans, Honeycrisps, Lobos, or Pippins as the one thing each of these apples has in common is crisp texture which makes them good choices because they don’t break down and become mushy in the baking process. You can make this pudding with all one kind of apple or a mixture of varieties because each brings its own flavor and characteristics in terms of sweetness, tartness, and flavor.
This Apple Maple Bread Pudding freezes well so, if there happens to be leftovers, they can be stowed away for a later treat.
I like to serve a Maple Liqueur Sauce over this pudding though a simple brown sugar sauce, crème fraiche, or ice cream are also good toppings.
Apple Maple Bread Pudding
with Maple Liqueur Sauce
Ingredients:
1 – 1 lb loaf French bread
3 cups whole milk
1 cup less 1½ tbsp Blend/cream (10%M.F.)
2½ cups thinly sliced baking apples, sliced about 1/8” thick (about 3 medium-sized apples)
½ tbsp butter
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp maple liqueur
3 extra-large eggs
1 cup white sugar
1/3 cup maple syrup
3 tbsp melted butter
2 tsp vanilla
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp allspice
Pinch cardamom
¾ cup raisins soaked in 1½ tbsp maple liqueur
Method:
Assemble ingredients.
Preheat oven to 325°F.
Grease 9”x13” pan.
In large bowl, roughly tear the French bread into small pieces, crusts and all.
Pour the milk and blend (cream) over the bread.
Cover and let sit for 15-30 minutes then hand crush mixture until well blended.
Meanwhile, peel, core, and thinly slice the apples into slices about 1/8” thick.
Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add the apples and sauté for about 2 minutes. Sprinkle with brown sugar and sauté apples for another minute. Remove pan from heat and add liqueur. Return to heat and sauté the apples for 5-7 minutes, or until they are softened and a golden color.
In medium-sized bowl, beat the eggs well. Add the sugar and beat again. Beat in the maple syrup, melted butter, and vanilla. Add the spices and stir well. Pour over bread-milk mixture in large bowl and mix well.
Lastly, gently fold in the sautéed apples along with the raisins.
Pour mixture into prepared pan. Smooth batter evenly in pan.
Bake for about 50-60 minutes or until pudding springs back to a light touch and/or a cake tester (or knife) inserted into 2-3 places in the pudding comes out clean.
Remove pudding from oven and transfer pudding pan to a cooling rack to rest for 20 minutes. Slice into 12 pieces and serve warm with maple liqueur sauce, brown sugar sauce, crème anglaise, or ice cream.
Yield: 12 servings
Maple Liqueur Sauce
Ingredients:
1 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp cornstarch
dash of salt
2 cups boiling water
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp maple liqueur
2 tsp vanilla
¼ cup butter
Method:
In saucepan, mix the brown sugar, cornstarch, and salt together well. Add the boiling water, maple syrup, maple liqueur, and vanilla together. Mix well. Add butter. Cook over medium low heat until sauce thickens and reaches desired consistency. Serve hot or warm over Apple-Maple Bread Pudding.
Yield: Apx. 2½ cups
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Apple Maple Bread Pudding
Apple and maple flavours combine to make a delectable bread pudding. Divine served with a warm Maple Liqueur Sauce.
Ingredients
- 1 – 1 lb loaf French bread
- 3 cups whole milk
- 1 cup less 1½ tbsp Blend/cream (10%M.F.)
- 2½ cups thinly sliced baking apples, sliced about 1/8” thick (about 3 medium-sized apples)
- ½ tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp maple liqueur
- 3 extra-large eggs
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 3 tbsp melted butter
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 3/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp nutmeg
- 1/8 tsp allspice
- Pinch cardamom
- ¾ cup raisins soaked in 1½ tbsp maple liqueur
Instructions
- Assemble ingredients.
- Preheat oven to 325°F.
- Grease 9”x13” pan.
- In large bowl, roughly tear the French bread into small pieces, crusts and all.
- Pour the milk and blend (cream) over the bread.
- Cover and let sit for 15-30 minutes then hand crush mixture until well blended.
- Meanwhile, peel, core, and thinly slice the apples into slices about 1/8” thick.
- Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add the apples and sauté for about 2 minutes. Sprinkle with brown sugar and sauté apples for another minute. Remove pan from heat and add liqueur. Return to heat and sauté the apples for 5-7 minutes, or until they are softened and a golden color.
- In medium-sized bowl, beat the eggs well. Add the sugar and beat again. Beat in the maple syrup, melted butter, and vanilla. Add the spices and stir well. Pour over bread-milk mixture in large bowl and mix well.
- Lastly, gently fold in the sautéed apples along with the raisins.
- Pour mixture into prepared pan. Smooth batter evenly in pan.
- Bake for about 50-60 minutes or until pudding springs back to a light touch and/or a cake tester (or knife) inserted into 2-3 places in the pudding comes out clean.
- Remove pudding from oven and transfer pudding pan to a cooling rack to rest for 20 minutes. Slice into 12 pieces and serve warm with maple sauce, brown sugar sauce, crème anglaise, or ice cream.
Recipe Notes
Copyright My Island Bistro Kitchen
Maple Liqueur Sauce
Delectable Maple Sauce for Drizzling Over Puddings
Ingredients
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- dash of salt
- 2 cups boiling water
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tbsp maple liqueur
- 2 tsp vanilla
- ¼ cup butter
Instructions
- In saucepan, mix the brown sugar, cornstarch, and salt together well. Add the boiling water, maple syrup, maple liqueur, and vanilla together. Mix well. Add butter. Cook over medium low heat until sauce thickens and reaches desired consistency. Serve hot or warm over Apple-Maple Bread Pudding.
Recipe Notes
Yield: Apx. 2½ cups
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