Irish Bread Pudding Question

[chefbec]

You can definitely make this the night before. I would serve it warm. I reheated it in the oven as I thought the microwave would make it too soft. It's sooooo good!

[CrystalB]

Hi-
I read all the past rave reviews for the Irish Bread Pudding and have one question, can this be made the night before? If so, should it be served cold or warmed? Thank you for any advice you may have. I am hosting Easter for my mom and SO- it's my first holiday and I want everything to be excellent.

[lorilei]

This can be made the night before -- in fact, I always make my bread pudding ahead so that I can soak a little bit of Irish Whiskey into it overnight http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/wink.gif

Serving it warm or cold is a matter of preference. Bread pudding is generally NOT served refrigerator cold, though, so you'll want to take it out an hour or so before eating. I like my pudding slightly warmed (but not hot) -- you can do this quickly and easily in the microwave.

[CrystalB]

Thank you both for your advice. I can't wait to try the recipe.

[Peggy C.]

Lori or anyone else that might know the answer, can I (and my gut feeling is yes) assemble this the night before (like a strata) and then bake when I'm almost ready to serve dessert?

Can I make the sauce ahead and reheat or is it best done just before serving?

(I'm thinking about making this for an annual St. Paddy's dinner with some friends/neighbors)

[penguin]

Originally posted by Peggy C.
Lori or anyone else that might know the answer, can I (and my gut feeling is yes) assemble this the night before (like a strata) and then bake when I'm almost ready to serve dessert?

Can I make the sauce ahead and reheat or is it best done just before serving?

(I'm thinking about making this for an annual St. Paddy's dinner with some friends/neighbors)

Peggy, the answer to both of your questions is YES! You can assemble it the night before and then bake when almost ready for dessert. Just be sure to allow 10-15 minutes or so for the bread pudding to cool when you remove it from the oven. The sauce can definitely be made the day before and then reheated. BTW, the sauce is wonderful and any leftovers taste great on vanilla ice cream. Enjoy! :)

[Peeps]

FYI - if you're making this recipe skip the step of buttering and toasting the bread - it does not need it! (Unless of course, you're looking to add some more fat to your thighs! ;) ) I've made a zillion bread pudding recipes and NEVER seen one that called for buttering like that so I tried it both ways with this recipe and it made NO difference in taste. Now I always make it sans butter. So do yourself a favor, skip it (it also saves time).

Enjoy!

[Peggy C.]

Thanks for the quick replies and tips.

Peeps you're right I really don't need to add any extra fat so I'll probably skip that step.

[aliwally]

Peeps - do you also skip toasting the bread?