Name: Savory Bread Pudding with Spinach and Feta
Total time: PLACEHOLDER
Ingredients: 1 French baguette , (18- to 20-inch), torn into 1-inch pieces (about 10 cups); 1 tablespoon unsalted butter; 8 large egg yolks; 3 cups heavy cream; 2 cups whole milk; 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach , thawed and squeezed dry; 4 ounces feta cheese , crumbled (about 1 cup); 2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves; 2 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 2 teaspoons); 1 teaspoon salt; 3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Why This Recipe Works

After trying several types of bread for our savory bread pudding recipe, we settled on French baguettes for their strong crumb and neutral flavor. We thought the crust gave the bread pudding better texture, so we left it on. Instead of cubing our bread, we had better results tearing the baguette into ragged pieces. Toasting the torn pieces to a deep golden brown enriched their flavor and gave the bread a crispiness that helped prevent the finished dish from turning soggy. For the custard for our savory bread pudding recipe, we found that a mixture of 3 parts cream to 2 parts milk was rich but not over the top. To prevent curdling, we replaced the traditional whole eggs with just egg yolks, which stabilized the custard. It also yielded a more flavorful, richly colored custard.

Before You Begin

We prefer the flavor and texture of a high-quality French baguette here, but a conventional supermarket baguette will also work.

Instructions

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 450 degrees. Arrange the bread in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake until crisp and browned, about 12 minutes, turning the pieces over halfway through baking. Remove the bread from the oven and let cool.

Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees. Grease a 13 by 9-inch baking dish with the butter.

Whisk the yolks, cream, milk, spinach, feta, thyme, garlic, salt, and pepper together in a large bowl. Add the toasted bread and toss until evenly coated. Let the mixture sit until the bread softens and begins to absorb the custard, about 30 minutes, tossing occasionally. (If the majority of the bread is still too hard after 30 minutes, let it soak for another 15 to 20 minutes.)

Pour the bread mixture into the prepared baking dish. Bake until the custard is just set, about 60 minutes, rotating the dish halfway through the baking time.

Remove the bread pudding from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.