Bread and butter pudding

Bread and butter pudding is a traditional dessert popular in British cuisine. It is essentially a baked form of French toast.

It is made by layering slices of buttered bread scattered with raisins in an oven dish into which an egg and milk mixture, commonly seasoned with nutmeg (and sometimes vanilla or other spices), is poured. It is then baked in an oven and served. Some people may serve it with custard or cream, but often the pudding under the crust is moist enough to be without sauce.

Although the pudding is most often associated with childhood and school dinners, in some recipes a measure of beer may be added for a more grown-up touch of luxury. Perhaps in reference to the 'school dinner' theme however, sometimes raspberry, strawberry, blackberry or mixed fruit jam, marmalade or other sweet preserves will be spread upon the bread, along with the butter, making for a sweet yet truly childhood reminiscent dessert. Other modern variations include scattering fresh or dried grapes between the layers of bread, melting apples into the egg-milk mixture, and using unusual types of breads — such as brioche — to make it.

Bread and butter pudding should not be confused with bread pudding.

A very similar sweet pudding, but using bone marrow instead of butter, was made in seventeenth century England and called whitepot or marrow pudding [http://www.historicfood.com/English%20Puddings.htm] .

External links

* [http://www.retrofoodrecipes.com/bread_and_butter_pudding.html A classic 1950s English version of the recipe]
* [http://uktv.co.uk/food/recipe/aid/516703 Bread and Butter pudding recipe]