Pumpkin Bread Pudding

Last night I was craving something warm and pumpkiny but there was nothing in my fridge to satisfy said craving. This meant that I was going to have to make something, but I didn't want to invest too much energy into it. (Remember that I am remarkably lazy when it comes to cooking for myself.) The solution: bread pudding.

I had all the ingredients for it and it took all of 5 minutes to put it together. I'm not really a fan of bread pudding - I usually find it to be dry and flavorless - but I love pumpkin and I made a generous amount of custard so that the final product came out rich and creamy. I was really happy with it, and, while bread pudding still isn't high on my list of favorite desserts, this one is really good.

-----

Pumpkin Bread Pudding
(serves 6-8)

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 cups of torn bread (use something good, like a baguette or ciabatta, and tear 1" thick slices into approximately 1" pieces)
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup pumpkin puree*
1/2 cup dark maple syrup**
1 large egg
1 egg yolk
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
Optional: 1/4 cup chocolate chunks

*Fresh is best, but canned is ok
** I use Grade B - it has a much richer flavor than dark grade A - I like using maple syrup with pumpkin instead of sugar, but feel free to use brown sugar if you don't have any good maple syrup on hand.

*****

Preheat oven to 350°F and set a rack in the middle.

Put the butter in a 2-qt souffle dish and microwave on high power for 1 minute to melt the butter. Toss the bread cubes with the butter and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk, cream, pumpkin puree, maple syrup, eggs, salt, and spices (and chocolate chunks if using).

Pour the pumpkin mixture over the bread and stir to combine. Let the mixture stand for 15 minutes. Place the dish on a baking sheet and bake until the custard is set, 30-35 minutes.