Scotch Bread Pudding

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •6-cup (1.4 litre) metal ring or small Bundt mould
• •Deep roasting pan for the bain-marie
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Small saucepan
• •Broad flexible spatula

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the pudding base

   Heat the oven to 325°F (160°C). Prepare ½ recipe French Bread Pudding (No. 2490) exactly through its final egg-white fold, reserving the butter and bread crumbs specified there to coat a 6-cup (1.4 litre) metal ring mould. Do not mould or poach the base yet. Fold only until the whites disappear; a few pale streaks are preferable to a pudding made heavy by determined stirring.

   The base must be cool before the eggs enter it. Warm bread mixture cooks the egg at once and collapses the whites; if it still feels warm, wait.
2. 2

   Slice and dry fruit

   Choose one ripe but firm fruit and slice it no thicker than 2 mm. Pear, apple, apricot, peach, or plum all suit the formula. Spread the slices between clean towels and blot them carefully, especially if using stone fruit. Wet fruit releases juice into the custard and sinks; if the slices are already weeping, leave them on the towel for five minutes and blot again.

3. 3

   Fold and fill

   Add the fruit to the prepared base in two additions, using a broad spatula to lift the mixture from the bottom and turn it over the slices. Stop as soon as the fruit is distributed. Spoon the mixture into the prepared mould and smooth the top without pressing it down. If a few slices immediately collect at the bottom, lift them once through the mixture with the spatula. Ça se rattrape. Do not keep stirring, or the beaten whites lose the air that gives this pudding its tenderness.

4. 4

   Poach in bain-marie

   Cover the mould loosely with buttered parchment and foil, then set it in a deep roasting pan. Pour very hot water into the pan to reach halfway up the mould and transfer it carefully to the oven. Poach for 45 to 55 minutes, until the edges are firm, the centre trembles gently, and the middle reaches about 172°F (78°C). The bain-marie must remain calm. If the water begins to bubble hard, add a little cool water and lower the oven by 25°F (15°C); catch it there and the custard stays smooth.

5. 5

   Make the fruit sauce

   While the pouding poaches, put the raspberries and water in a small saucepan. Bring them just to a simmer, crush the berries, and cook for 3 minutes. Press the mixture through a fine sieve into a clean pan, then add the red-currant jelly and warm gently until it melts into the raspberry juice. Simmer for 1 to 2 minutes, just until the sauce coats a spoon with a light garnet gloss. If it sets too thick, whisk in water a teaspoon at a time; if it is thin, simmer it briefly. Keep it warm without boiling.

6. 6

   Rest and unmould

   Lift the mould from the water and rest it for 15 minutes. Run a thin knife around both edges, place a warm serving platter over the mould, and invert decisively. If the pouding clings, wrap the mould in a hot damp towel for 30 seconds and try again. Spoon a little red-currant and raspberry sauce around the base and into the centre of the ring, leaving the fruit-flecked surface visible. Serve the remaining sauce alongside. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Use one fruit rather than a mixture. Pears and apples should be ripe enough to perfume the pudding but firm enough to slice cleanly; peaches, apricots, and plums must be blotted with particular care.
• •The classical pantry solves the season honestly. Well-drained canned pears or apricots work when fresh fruit is tired, and frozen raspberries are excellent in the sauce because they are cooked and strained.
• •Red-currant jelly supplies the clear acidity and ruby colour this sauce requires. Warm it gently after adding the raspberry juice; a furious boil reduces it back toward jam.
• •A small metal ring or Bundt mould is the practical equivalent of the deep border mould. If you use a solid 6-cup pudding basin, allow another 5 to 10 minutes and judge the centre by its tremble, not the clock.

Advance Preparation

• •The red-currant and raspberry sauce can be made up to 3 days ahead and chilled. Reheat it over gentle heat, loosening it with a teaspoon of water if the jelly has tightened.
• •The poached pudding can be cooled in its mould, covered, and chilled for up to 1 day. Rewarm it, still covered, in a gentle bain-marie for about 25 minutes before resting and unmoulding.
• •Slice and blot the seasonal fruit shortly before folding it into the base. Once the egg whites have been folded, mould and poach the pudding promptly so their lift is not lost.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 200g)