Morning Bread Pudding

Don't let the caramelized sugar get too "dark brown". Not only does caramelized sugar turn quickly, it will continue to cook and caramelize in the oven, and as mine did, overcook/burn and ruin the pudding. Next time I make this I will err on the side of a lighter caramel color and recommend the recipe writers consider making that important change.

About the bread - what do you mean by the slices being "about 3 inches round"? Do you mean 3" in diameter? Also, you variously refer to mascarpone, fromage blanc, and fromage frais. I assume you mean any of these?

Thanks.

I believe the slices are to be 1/2" thick; and 3" in diameter, cut into rounds. A cookie cutter (or something similar) would help.
The mascarpone is baked in the pudding, while the individual servings are topped with fromage frais or formal blanc.
Hope this helps; happy cooking!

Fresh cheese. You could use a really thick yoghurt instead.

This is a fabulous way to start a lazy morning! Better yet, the recipe is totally forgiving: Any kind of bread, milk, and filling can be used. I freeze all those end bits of loafs, then cut them into large cubes when enough and use the mix to add interest. Consider adding orange marmalade, chopped nuts, fresh or dried fruit, etc. between layers. Also, when you refrigerate it overnight, cover with a bread board about the same size, with two cans on top to keep the bread from floating.

The unnecessary over-complications of this recipe are to the extreme. Make it like you would an upside-down cake, combining brown sugar and butter in a cast iron skillet on top of the stove or oven-proof dish in the stove. Just cube the bread! The proportions of eggs to milk is way off the charts! I can't believe this was published.

Why not just use small cubes of Challah and use a shallow casserole dish. The assembly in this recipe seems unnecessary.

Make the caramel sauce the same way directed but once it starts to turn a light brown add heavy cream to thin it out, you can eyeball this maybe a few tablespoons. For a sauce you need a liquid component. Otherwise it will no matter how it’s done turn into more of a brittle texture.

I made this for a Christmas brunch. It was ok, but we would have preferred a bit more texture. Even when cooked for 45 minutes, the brioche/egg mixture was too soft, so people tended to eat around the edges. Maybe it would be better with a heartier-textured bread, but I won't make this again.

Among other things, I can’t understand how the almonds ended up on top of the caramel when they were put in at the opposite part of the dish. These look like they were added to the caramel, as opposed to on top of the partially baked eggy bread?

This was delicious. Though some have said it is dry, mine was almost too moist. The one issue I had was the caramel was harder than it should be. It was a bit like a crown of caramel that needed a knife to cut. Not sure what I did incorrectly to cause this.

Was disappointed in this. Dealing with caramel is not easy to begin with, so it does take some work. I'm not going to fix it again, but if I did, I'd use more almonds, but replace the almond extract with a teaspoon or more of vanilla, and top it with whipped cream!

The almond extract is optional (and IMO disgusting). Feel free to substitute an extract that tastes good to you, like vanilla, orange, or both. Or skip it altogether - it is not necessary for the "chemistry" of the dish.