Savory Bread Pudding with Heirloom Tomatoes, Herbs and Mozzarella



First let me just say that this is a very rich dish not meant to be eaten in large portions. A wonderful lunch or dinner with a salad eating only a small serving size.  Eating rich dishes and staying thin is all about portion control and exercise.  It's important to me that I don't encourage anyone to over eat.  With that said let's get on to this wonderful bread pudding.  Until recently I only thought of bread pudding as a rich dessert that I occasionally indulged. One summer in New Hampshire I ordered a savory bread pudding and I was hooked.  I made my bread pudding with heirloom tomatoes that I picked fresh from my garden along with my fresh herbs. You can add different veggies to recipe. Experiment, have fun and enjoy a wonderfully richly flavorful dish.

Savory Bread Pudding with Heirloom Tomatoes, Herbs and Mozzarella

1(1pound) loaf crusty white bread
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
2 tablespoon fresh basil
1 tablespoon fresh oregano
1 garlic clove, minced

3 tablespoon olive oil
2 shallots, chopped
2 cloves garlic chopped
2 cups chopped heirloom tomatoes

3 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
8 large eggs
1 teaspoon black pepper
8 ounces fresh mozzarella chopped into 1-in cubes
2 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 375 F. Butter or spray with cooking spray a 13x9x2-inch baking dish. Cut bottom crust and short ends off bread, discarding. Cut remaining bread with crust into 1-inch cubes(about 10 cups loosely packed). Place cubes in large bowl. Add oil, thyme, basil, oregano and garlic; toss to coat. Spread bread cubes out on large baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Bake until golden and slightly crunchy, stirring occasionally, about 15-20 minutes. Return toasted bread cubes to the same bowl.

Add olive oil to large skillet. Add shallot and garlic saute about 5 minutes stirring occasionally. Add tomatoes continuing to cook for additional 5 minutes. Set aside.

Whisk heavy cream, eggs, salt and ground pepper in large bowl. Mix egg mixture into bread. Place 1/3 of bread and egg mixture in prepared pan.  Layer with 1/2 tomato then cheese. Continue layering 1/3 bread then 1/2 tomato and cheese then finally remaining 1/3 bread mixture. Sprinkle top with Parmesan cheese.  Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.

Preheat oven 350 F. Bake uncovered until set and top is golden about 50-60 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before cutting and serving.

Enjoy!





www.gooddinnermremellen.com


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Rigatoni with Eggplant and Pine Nut Crunch

Grilled Mediterranean Shrimp

Why "Good Dinner Mrs Mellen"