Bread & Butter Pudding with Caramel Sauce

On our cruise this was one of our favorite desserts.....here's a couple recipes that look pretty close....gonna try it soon! For the sauce...I will use my 6 minute Caramel Sauce recipe....yes I've adapted it once again!!

Bread & Butter Pudding with Caramel Sauce
3/4 cup unsalted butter, creamed well
20 slices white bread, with crusts
2 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons granulated sugar, for sprinkling over bread
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 vanilla beans, split or 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
6 cups whole milk
6 large eggs
4 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon salt
Caramel Sauce
1/4 cup butter
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
2 1/2 cups half and half milk

Preheat the broiler.
Butter one side of each slice of bread and toast them with the buttered side up. Watch carefully as not to burn.
Stand bread slices upright to cool-- do not stack as they will stick together-- When toast is cool and dry, trim off crusts and cut into triangles.
Arrange in a deep 10 inch cake pan, in a spiral overlapping, with the points up. There will be an empty space in the center.
Sprinkle with the 2 tbsp sugar and the cinnamon. Set aside.
Split the vanilla bean and scrape the seeds into the milk in a saucepot, over medium heat.
Note: If using extract, do not put it in the milk here, scald the milk alone.
In a large bowl, beat the eggs, remaining sugar, salt and vanilla extract if been used, until smooth and lemon colored-- about one minute.
With mixer on low, and in a stream add the scalded milk-- now remove the vanilla bean.
With a ladle pour as much of this custard into the centre of the cake pan, careful not too overflow-- let stand and keep adding more, as its been soaked in.
Bake in a hot 400°F oven in a hot water bath-- for about 40 minutes until pudding is firm and puffed and golden brown-- Remove and place on a rack to cool.
Sauce-- Put butter in a pot, and pour in the sugar.
DO NOT STIR Over medium heat allow sugar to caramelize slowly--should take 10 minutes or so.
Stir when mixture is a nice brown colour and bubbling.
Continue until its a dark golden brown-- Stir in small amounts of the cream, it will harden up-- but then will go back to a liquid, or a thick syrup-- Strain through a sieve, and keep hot in a warm water bath, until needed.
To serve-- cut the cake into ten portions, as you would a pie-- using a knife and a pie lifter to remove, as not to loose any custard-- Pour some sauce over each.

Read more at: http://www.food.com/recipe/bread-and-butter-pudding-with-caramel-sauce-82694?oc=linkback

Here is another version.....

Old Fashioned Bread Pudding with Caramel Sauce
7 cups white bread or 7 cups egg bread, cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 cup golden raisin
1/2 cup melted butter
4 whole eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon grated nutmeg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups half and half milk
2 cups whole milk
Carmel Sauce
1/2 cup butter
1 cup light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup evaporated milk

Place the bread cubes in a 9 x 13 buttered glass pan.Sprinkle the raisins over the bread.
Drizzle on the melted butter, do not mix into the bread cubes and raisins.
Set this aside.In a large bowl, beat eggs until broken up and blend in the sugars, nutmeg, half and half and the milk.
DO NOT OVER BEAT THIS MIXTURE JUST COMBINE.
Pour the mixture over the cubes and raisins and let it all soak in, gently patting the bread down into the milk every now and then.
Sprinkle the top with a grating of more nutmeg.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Bake the pudding for 50 minutes, checking about the 40 minute mark, that its not getting too brown-- If it is cover with foil loosely.
Bake until pudding is puffy all over and golden.Remove to rack to cool.
Sauce-- In a saucepot over med. heat, melt the butter, and brown sugar.
Bring to a boil, and remove from the heat.
Whisk in the salt, vanilla, and milk.
The sauce can be made ahead, then warmed in the microwave-- Cut cooled pudding into squares, and top each with hot sauce.

Read more at: http://www.food.com/recipe/old-fashion-bread-pudding-with-caramel-sauce-82688?oc=linkback