On Thursday I asked you to help me, help you with your Thanksgiving menu. There were plenty of wonderful comments and questions, but only one actual recipe request.**

Marissa and Sharon asked for a bread pudding recipe. More specifically – for pumpkin bread pudding. Today I give you the recipe.

At the same time that I was working on this, I was testing a recipe I found on Pinterest for a “Peekaboo Pumpkin Pound Cake.” I’ll be making the cake on Wednesday, in the classes I’m teaching at Les Gourmettes. I will give you the cake recipe later in the week.

I mention it because I used the scraps from the pumpkin bread that was used for the cake recipe, in this bread pudding recipe.

If you don’t want to make your own pumpkin bread, go ahead and buy a loaf of pumpkin bread. I’ve seen it in all the grocery store bakeries and at Trader Joe’s.

The pudding would be too dense and heavy if only pumpkin bread was used. So we’re using three large croissants for two-thirds of the total bread needed.

Both the pumpkin bread and the croissants need to be torn into bite-size pieces and left out to dry for at least 24 hours before making the pudding, so plan accordingly.

Crème anglaise is a custard used as a dessert cream or sauce. It is a mix of sugar, egg yolks, and hot milk, often flavored with vanilla. It is also the base for vanilla ice cream. The pudding is especially delicious served with crème anglaise. Instead of going to the trouble and effort of making it from scratch, we’re just going to let some vanilla ice cream melt and call it Quick Crème Anglaise.  It can’t get much easier than that!

Note: When I make this again for our Thanksgiving dessert, I will be adding 1 cup of toasted chopped pecans to the bread in the baking dish before pouring the custard on top. I think the pudding needs that little crush and texture that pecans will add.

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