Slow Cooker - Tres Leches Bread Pudding with Cinnamon Sugar Sauce

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Those of you who love the bearly sweet desserts of Europe may be excused from tonight's post, but I do hope you'll return tomorrow evening when I'll be featuring something less treacly to balance things for you. If, however, you have a sweet tooth that rivals that of the critters that hover around a pie chest, keep reading. Kelsey Nixon has created this unusual bread pudding for The Cooking Channel, and it is a great way to end a spicy Southwestern-style barbecue. While her creation is not cheap to make, it's really easy to prepare and I think those of you those of you who are looking for new ways to use your slow cooker will be tempted to give it a try. I followed her recipe to a tee, save for the fact that I used a liner of paper towels under the lid to capture excess moisture and prevent it from making the pudding goopy. The sweet lovers at the table had nothing but good words to say about the finished pudding, so I'm confident that it's good enough to share with you tonight. I will, however, repeat, it is very sweet and meant only for those of you who aren't afraid of sugar shock. Here is how this pudding and sauce are made. 

Tres Leches Bread Pudding with Cinnamon Sugar Sauce...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of The Cooking Channel and Kelsey Nixon

Ingredients:
Bread Pudding
Nonstick spray
2-1/4 cups whole milk
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon kosher salt
9 large egg yolks
1 loaf stale challah or other egg bread, cut or torn into 1-inch pieces
3/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted
Cinnamon Sugar Sauce, recipe follows
Freshly whipped cream, for serving
Cinnamon Sugar Sauce
3/4 cup sugar
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch salt
1 teaspoon baking soda

Directions:
1) To make the pudding: Coat insert of a slow cooker with nonstick spray. Line insert with aluminum foil for easy removal, letting some foil overhand for handles.
     In a large mixing bowl, whisk together whole milk, sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, salt and egg yolks. Toss in cubed bread and almonds and mix to coat all the bread.
    Add mixture to slow cooker, cover and cook on low until center of the bread pudding is set, about 4 hours. Remove lid and cool. Use foil handles to lift bread pudding from slow cooker. Drizzle individual servings with Cinnamon Sugar Sauce and top with freshly whipped cream. Yield: 8 to 10 servings.
2) To make cinnamon sugar sauce: Combine sugar, butter, buttermilk, corn syrup, vanilla, cinnamon and salt in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Remove from heat and slowly add baking soda. The sauce will bubble up, but if you keep stirring it will settle down. Sauce thickens as it cools.

                    

                                                    Older Posts

                   One Year Ago Today:                                                      Two Years Ago Today:

                   Coffee Toffee Cookies                              Chili Beef Stir Fry with Snow Peas and Peppers

               Three Years Ago Today:                                                       Four Years Ago Today: 

                Butterscotch Swirl Cake                                Thai-Style Steamed Salmon with Tamarind Sauce