Caramelized Shallots and Apple Bread and Butter Pudding

Caramelized Shallots and Apple Bread and Butter Pudding

Last week I cooked and hosted a lunch with UK Shallots, it was held at Parrish Farm in Bedfordshire and we invited some lovely friends to come and see how the shallots are grown. We explored the farm, harvested our own shallots and even got to ride a tractor!

And of course we tucked into some yummy food.

We had a wonderful time but I think we were all surprised that the star of the meal was a Caramelized Shallot and Apple Bread and Butter Pudding. There’s something so wonderfully sweet about these banana shallots that seem to complement the apples so well and paired with the custard and soft pillowy brioche it all came together into a wonderfully surprising and delicious dessert.

Recipe:

For the caramelized shallots and apples

• 10 banana shallots – trim the root and tip and cut in half (from root to tip) and peel.
• 3 eating apples – quartered, cored and cut into wedges
• 100g butter
• 1 tablespoon golden caster sugar
• ½ tablespoon soft brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon

 

For the custard:

• 300ml (10fl oz) whole milk
• 250ml (9fl oz) double cream
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tbsp runny honey

 

You will need:

• lightly salted butter for spreading, at room temperature
• 1 loaf of broiche, thickly sliced  
• 22cm (8¾in) fluted pie dish, or similar-sized cake or baking tin, greased with butter
• Vanilla Ice cream to serve

Pre-heat the oven to 160C

1 Place the shallots and apples onto a large roasting tray, dot the butter over and sprinkle with the sugars and cinnamon. Roast in the oven for 25 mins until starting to darken and caramelize.  Set aside until cold.

2 Butter both sides of each slice of bread, then cut them into triangles. (I like lots of smaller triangles as the tips become nice and brown in the oven, but this is just my preferred aesthetic styling.) Arrange the buttered triangles of brioche in the pie dish like a flower or rose, starting with a ring of bread around the outside and working towards the centre.

3 To make the custard, gently warm the milk in a saucepan (you want it be steaming but not scalding). Stir in the cream until combined, then add the cinnamon.

4 In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the honey for about 3 minutes, until pale and frothy. Pour in half of the warm milk, whisking continuously. Once everything is well mixed, then pour in the rest of the milk and stir well. 

5 Take the wedges of apple and shallots and poke them in between the bread slices all around the pie dish.  I like them poking out randomly for a more rustic look.

 

6 Pour the custard all over the bread and let the whole thing stand for at least 20 minutes.

7 Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 190°C (170°C fan/375°F/Gas 5).

8 Bake the pudding for 25–35 minutes, or until the custard is bubbling and thick, and the top is golden brown.

For more dessert recipes, check these out on Dom in the Kitchen

Eat and of course, enjoy!