Make-Ahead Brunch Bread Pudding
About this Recipe
By: Rachel
Like many recipes in this blog, this one is inspired by a much-beloved Seattle chef: Tom Douglas. I grew up in Minnesota, and when I moved to the Pacific Northwest, I was bombarded by new sights, smells, and tastes. The first year I lived in Seattle is replete with wonderful taste memories, and many of those delicious bites were at Tom Douglas’s restaurants.
I remember the mushroom skewers at Lola, enhanced by the salty-umami flavor of anchovy. They were accompanied by the brightest Greek salad—luscious, briny cubes of feta cheese and sweet cherry tomatoes glistening with silky olive oil, accented by aromatic fresh mint. The crispy potatoes were served with thick, sour, garlicky yogurt for dipping.
I had my first arancini (which I mispronounced while ordering, of course)—at the iconic Dahlia Lounge. They arrived hot, crispy, and decadent, with molten cheese pouring out and the richness cut just enough by bitter chard.
There was my first taste of poke—buttery marinated tuna, soy, creamy avocado, and sharp scallions—at Etta’s. The tomato soup at Dahlia Bakery kept me obsessively heading back on my lunch hour, trying to figure out the secret recipe.
Far, far too late, I learned that there was a Dahlia Bakery cookbook, which contained, among other treasures, the much-desired tomato soup recipe. It also contained a wonderful recipe: Jackie’s Favorite Strata, a kind of savory bread pudding that is a Christmas morning favorite in the Douglas home. I’ve adapted it to suit my tastes, swapping Italian sausage for my preferred chicken and maple, which adds a note of sweetness to this brunch dish. I’ve also swapped the chard for asparagus, and the called-for “rustic” bread for challah.
Since this recipe calls for the unbaked dish to be refrigerated overnight, or for at least a few hours, to allow the bread to soak up the custard mixture, it is an ideal dish for entertaining. You can prepare it the night before, refrigerate it, and pop it in the oven in the morning.
Make-Ahead Brunch Bread Pudding
Ingredients
- 1 loaf challah (about 1 ½ pounds or 680 grams), cubed
- ½ pound (112g) maple-sweetened sausage, such as Applegate Chicken & Maple
- 4 tablespoons (60g) unsalted butter, softened and divided
- 2 tablespoons (30g) olive oil
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 8 ounces (225g) mushrooms (such as cremini), cleaned and chopped
- 1 pound (½ kilo) asparagus, tough ends discarded, chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 1 tablespoon (3g) sliced chives
- 8 ounces (225g) grated cheddar, such as Beecher’s flagship
- 5 large eggs
- 2 ½ cups (600mL) heavy cream
- ½ cup (120mL) whole milk
- ⅛ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1
- Butter a large casserole dish with 2 tablespoons (30g) butter, using more if needed. Set aside.
Step 2
- Prepare the sausage according to package directions. Cut into bite-sized pieces, and set aside.
Step 3
- Melt 1 tablespoon butter in your largest skillet. Add the chopped onion and cook until it begins to brown.
Step 4
- In the same skillet, add the remaining tablespoon butter and olive oil. Over medium-high heat, sauté the mushrooms, stirring occasionally, allowing them to fully release their juices and brown.
Step 5
- When the mushrooms are nearly done, add the asparagus. Sauté for 1 minute; the asparagus will be bright green but still crisp. Stir in the sausage, remove from heat, and set aside.
Step 6
- In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, cream, nutmeg, and salt together to make the custard, and set aside.
Step 7
- Now assemble the casserole. Layer the casserole, beginning with ⅓ of the bread, ⅓ of the vegetables and sausages, and ⅓ of the cheese. Continue to layer, reserving ⅓ of the cheese until after the custard is added.
Step 8
- Pour the custard evenly over the casserole, pressing the bread down with a spatula or back of a spoon to ensure that all of the bread cubes are submerged. Top with the remaining shredded cheese and the chives, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
Step 9
- Once ready to bake, remove the plastic wrap and preheat your oven to 350ºF (175ºC) or 325ºF (160ºC) convection bake. Place the casserole on a baking dish and bake for 60 minutes, or until slightly puffed and set in the center. Allow to cool for several minutes, and serve warm.
Beverage Pairing
By: Olivia
Between the vegetables and sausage in this brunch bread pudding, a light-bodied red wine would be a perfect pairing. Consider grapes like Pinot Noir, Gamay, and the Austrian grapes St. Laurent and Zweigelt. My favorite pairing would be Lambrusco. Light-bodied red and sparkling for brunch?! Yes, please!
