A few years ago, I had some random chunks of bread that were taking up space in my freezer. I had company coming over and it occurred to me to turn that leftover bread in to a casserole or bread pudding of sorts. I am not a big fan of sweet bread puddings, so the savory version seemed like the right course of action.
The bread pudding was a huge hit at that brunch.
Fast forward a few years. I recently found myself planning Shavuot meals. On Shavuot, it is customary to eat dairy meals. I decided to turn back to that bread pudding I made a few years ago. We still love it and I decided to share it here.
Enjoy!
- 3 tbsp. butter
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 5 cloves garlic, chopped
- 4 leeks, cleaned and sliced in to thin rounds
- 15 oz. baby bella mushrooms
- 1 tbsp. salt
- 2 tbsp. fresh tarragon, chopped
- 1 tbsp. fresh thyme, chopped
- 3 tsp. ground black pepper
- 2 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
- 6 large eggs
- ¾ cup vegetable broth
- 2 cups half & half
- ½ cup parmesan cheese
- 2 cups cheddar and jack shredded cheese blend
- additional salt and pepper
- 1 tsp. cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp. paprika
- 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
- 3 cups cubed pumpernickel bread, crusts removed
- 3 cups cubed italian bread, crusts removed
- olive oil spray
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Heat up the olive oil and butter in a large sauté pan.
- Add in the onions, garlic and leeks and sauté for about 3-5 minutes.
- Add in the sliced mushrooms and cook for another few minutes.
- Stir in the fresh herbs, salt and pepper and cook another two minutes.
- Cook until all of the veggies have softened. Remove from heat and set mixture aside.
- While the veggies cook, you can quickly prep the bread cubes and get to work on those.
- Spray a large baking sheet with olive oil spray.
- Place the bread cubes on the baking sheet and bake for about 10-15 minutes, or until the bread cubes start to brown.
- Remove from oven and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together the eggs, broth, half and half, additional spices, half of the parmesan cheese and half of the shredded cheese.
- Add the lightly toasted bread cubes to the egg mixture.
- Stir the vegetable mixture into the egg mixture.
- Let the mixture sit for about 20 minutes.
- Pour the mixture in to a 9"x13" pan.
- Sprinkle over the remaining cheeses.
- Bake in oven for about 25-30 minutes or until pudding is set and cheese starts to bubble and brown.
- Remove from oven and let sit a bit before serving.
- Enjoy!
Nice use of tarragon in this. I bet this smells delicious as it bakes.