Chocolate Bread Pudding for Two

Bread pudding has always been one of my favs, probably because it manages to transform my undying love of bread into a dessert so I now have the ability to have bread for every meal of the day. Whenever I make this recipe, I usually always take the traditional route, every once in a while I go a little crazy and add some whisky sauce or a scoop of ice cream... UNTIL NOW!

I came across this killer recipe idea from Alton Brown who, being the genius he is, decided to throw some chocolate chips into an already tasty dessert, BUT he didn't stop there, no sir you also add hot chocolate mix and espresso!!! Bread + chocolate + coffee + cream = possible all of my favorite things combined into one edible creation! I had to cut adjust this recipe and limit myself to 2 servings for my own safety, there's no telling what I would've been capable of doing with a whole pan of this stuff.


Chocolate Bread Pudding for Two

serves 2 (obviously)

1 egg
2 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup hot chocolate mix
2 cups half-and-half
2 ounces espresso, slightly cooled
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 TBS unsalted butter
5-6 medium slices of stale challah bread, cut into 1-inch cubes*
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (or more if you fancy)

Directions:

1.Butter two ramekins and set aside. Place the eggs and yolks in a blender and pulse for 30 seconds. Slowly add the sugar while blending, then hot chocolate mix followed by half-and-half, espresso, and vanilla until well combined.

2.Pour a little bit of the milk mixture at the bottom of each ramekins followed by cubes of bread and repeat, pressing down with a spatula ever so often to thoroughly saturate the bread. Cover and set aside at room temperature for 2 hours, or refrigerate for up to 8 hours to allow the bread to soak up all that creamy goodness.

3.Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Place ramekins on a rimmed baking sheet (to catch any drips) and bake until the internal temperature reaches at least 170 degrees F, about 35-40 minutes. If you noticed the tops getting crispy, you could brush the tops with melted butter about halfway through the baking process. Remove to a cooling rack for 15 minutes before serving.

**My bread is so dark because I used whole grain bread (you might remember THIS post I did last week) but I really wouldn't recommend it - definitely stick to the challah or a lighter white bread.

Recipe adapted from Alton Brown