What to bring to Autumn brunch Pt. Two: Squash Bread Pudding

This moreish, spoiling bread pudding is the perfect complement to the bright salad in Part One. It’s sweet, tender and rich crowned with a zippy offsetting parmesan crust. 

squash bread pudding

Squash Bread Pudding

Serves 8 as a side

1 butternut squash 

½ acorn squash (use the other ½ for Pt. 1: Winter Rainbow Salad)

3 TB maple syrup 

1 tsp cinnamon 

½ tsp vanilla 

½ tsp nutmeg 

½ tsp salt

6 eggs

2 cups heavy cream 

knob of butter for greasing

2 baguettes (get nice ones)

1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese (yes, that’s right, just trust me)

Preheat oven to 400. Cut squashes in half and scoop out seeds. Place in roasting pan flat side down and roast until very tender (45 min – an hour depending on size). Once squash is done set it aside and allow it to cool completely. 

Once squash is cool, scoop out the fruit into a bowl and discard the skin. Mash to a pulp. Add maple syrup, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, and salt and mix well. In another bowl whisk together the eggs and cream. Cut off the ends of your baguettes and eat them. Grease a casserole dish and get ready to make your assembly line. Tear off a small chunk of baguette about the size of the circle you make from touching your pointer fingertip to your thumbtip (why isn’t that a word?) Dunk your bread into the egg mixture and hold for a beat, then spoon a dob of the squash mixture on it, then put it in the casserole dish. Repeat ten thousand times until you fill up the dish, making sure to really pack the bread chunks in and making sure that your squash blobs are evenly distributed (you shouldn’t have any squash left). Pour the remaining egg mixture over the top of the whole thing and set it aside for 10 mins to soak.

Preheat the oven to 400 if you turned it off from the squash. Sprinkle the bread pudding liberally with parmesan. Bake for 45 min to an hour until the top is golden brown. If need be, crisp up that parm under the broiler for a minute or two at the end.