8 slices of bread buttered  I prefer to use Challah because it is egg rich which adds flavor to the puddling. We make our own Challah at the restaurant to use with our chicken salad, chicken caprese and other sandwiches because it toasts so well and the crust is so beautiful. We always have this bread on hand.


A hand full of raisins or chopped dried fruit of your choice - chopped apricots are quite nice as are crasins.
1/2 tsp nutmeg
3/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 3/4 cups cream
2 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
raw sugar for sprinkling the top

for the sauce
10 tbsp butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
3 tbsp rish whiskey

Preheat oven to 350

butter a loaf pan

You can remove the crusts of bread or leave them on. I prefer to leave them on. Place four slices overlapping horizontally in the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle with raisins or chopped dried fruit. Place the remaining four slices of bread on top. Arrange so they over lap and cover the lower layer.

Beat the eggs with cream, milk, vanilla, nutmeg and sugar until homogenized. Pour this mixture over the bread. Sprinkle the raw sugar over the top to give it a crispy crust. Bake in oven for about 1 hour or until all the liquid has been absorbed and the pudding is puffed up and golden brown.

while the pudding is baking, make the whiskey sauce. It is worth it to use a good quality whiskey as this IS the flavor of your sauce. Melt the butter over low heat, and the sugar, stir the mixture until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat, add the egg,use a stick mixer to blend, add the whiskey and blend again. (or you can pour the butter sugar mixture into a blender, add the egg, blend, add the whiskey, blend. This sauce can be made ahead and kept in the refrigerator for up to a month. It is amazing on french toast and pancakes as well as this pudding.

Serve the pudding on warm serving plates with the whiskey sauce poured over the top.

This recipe is from Irish Food and Cooking by Biddy White Lennon and Georgina Campbell, Hermes House 2005


Challah Bread

Water 8 oz
yeast .36 oz
Bread  flour 1lb 4 oz
egg yolks   4 oz
sugar   1.5 oz
Salt  2tsp
corn oil  2 oz

egg wash - one egg and 2 tbls water
poppy seeds

Water should be at a temperature that feels neither warm nor cold on your wrist.  Into a 4 quart electric mixer bowl, add yeast, stir until it is dissolved. Add flour, yolks, sugar, salt, and oil. Using a dough hook, mix until the dough is thoroughly mixed and elastic - 10 minutes or so at a slow-med speed. (Or you can blend by hand - kneading until blended and elastic). Grease a bowl at least twice the size as your lump of dough, put the dough into the bowl, cover with a damp cloth and allow to rise until double - about 1 1/2 hours at 80 degrees F. Punch down the dough, divide into three parts, roll each part into a "snake" (this is what my children called them) about 14 inches long, braid the three strands, place in greased loaf pan. Brush top of dough with egg wash, sprinkle with poppy seeds. Let rise until double, bake at 350 about 35 minutes or until the space in the cracks of the braid are a light gold color. The main crust will be a healthy brown. Cool for 15 minutes then remove from pan and finish cooling on a rack.

Alternatively and more traditionally, you can shape the bread this way: divide the dough into six parts and make six "snakes". Braid three strands together and place on a greased cookie sheet, brush with egg wash, braid the other three stands together and  place them on top of the first braid tucking the ends under the bottom of the first. Egg wash and sprinkle with poppy seeds. Let rise until double, bake at 350 as above.