Caramel Croissant Pudding

Normally when I have my parents come to visit, I make very detailed plans for the meals we will consume during their stay. This time, I went the other direction and tried to leave things a little more loosely planned, with suggestions instead of recipes. I laid out certain cuts of meat for the main courses, and then improvised side dishes from there.

NORMALLY, this would drive me crazy.

However, what this approach did for me was make room to add new dishes, which came in very handy when my new Thanksgiving issue of Food and Wine magazine arrived on Saturday.

See, I have a thing for bread pudding. Any kind of bread pudding. Throw caramel into the mix, and I am a goner.

See what Food and Wine did to me this month? CARAMEL CROISSANT PUDDING. Yes, they are evil. And yes, you guessed it, I went straight out in search of croissants for this pudding, which we had for dessert on Sunday night. And Monday. With vanilla ice cream on top.

This dessert was extremely easy, but what I liked best about it was the size. It is made in a ONE QUART baking dish. No 9x13 pan here. This dessert is the perfect size for a family of four, for ONE meal. And it is ideal if you just happen to have a couple of croissants leftover (which, I didn’t, but you get my point). Small ingredients, small portions, big flavor.

We all enjoyed this dish, and I’m officially putting it into the desserts rotation!

Caramel-Croissant Pudding

Ingredients
2 stale all-butter croissants, coarsely torn
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons water
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons bourbon
2 large eggs, beaten

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Lightly butter a 1-quart shallow baking dish and arrange the croissant pieces in the dish. In a small saucepan, stir the sugar and water over moderately high heat until the sugar dissolves; wash down any crystals on the sides with a wet pastry brush. Cook without stirring until a medium amber caramel forms, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the cream, milk and bourbon. Cook over low heat just until any hardened caramel dissolves.

2. In a bowl, whisk the eggs. Gradually whisk in the hot caramel. Pour over the croissants and let stand for 10 minutes, pressing the croissants to keep them submerged.

3. Bake the pudding in the center of the oven for 20 minutes, until puffed and golden. Let cool for 10 minutes, then serve.