Wild-Mushroom Bread Pudding

I must admit my favorite part of the Thanksgiving meal next to the turkey is the stuffing. A few years ago I made a whole Thanksgiving dinner in Manila complete with brined turkey and cornbread sausage stuffing. Needless to say it was a big success.

When I read MarketManila’s post on the mushroom stuffing he made I immediately copied the recipe and volunteered to make the stuffing for Thanksgiving in my cousin’s house.

Unlike MarketMan I pretty much followed the original recipe from Bon Appétit magazine.

We shopped in a Korean supermarket and these were the only mushrooms available. It’s just like the mushrooms we have in Manila.

1. Slice all the mushrooms thickly.

2. Cut the day old French bread into 1″ cubes. I didn’t bother to remove the crust.

3. Sauté the mushrooms with all the spices.

4. I sautéed the mushrooms the night before and kept it in the refrigerator.

5. Add the bread cubes to the cream and egg mixture. Let sit for 15 minutes then add the mushrooms.

6, Transfer to a baking dish and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake until pudding is brown and puffed, and set in center, about 1 hour.

This is a very easy dish to prepare. It doesn’t have to Thanksgiving to enjoy this yummy bread pudding. This would go great with roast chicken, roast pork, steak or any meat dish. Just don’t eat too much even though you’ll want too. It’s not exactly healthy but I can assure you it’s super duper delicious.

Wild-Mushroom Bread Pudding
adapted from Bon Appétit | December 1997

3 tablespoons olive oil
6 ounces shiitake mushrooms, thickly sliced
6 ounces oyster mushrooms, thickly sliced
6 ounces button mushrooms, thickly sliced
2 portobello mushrooms, stems and gills removed, caps thickly sliced
4 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
1 teaspoon dried thyme

5 large eggs
2 cups whipping cream or heavy cream
1 cup milk (do not use low-fat or nonfat)
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
6 cups 1-inch cubes day-old French bread (about 6 ounces)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly butter 8 x 8 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add all mushrooms, garlic, basil, parsley, sage and thyme and sauté until mushrooms are tender and brown, about 15 minutes. Remove pot from heat. Season mixture to taste with salt and pepper.

Whisk eggs, cream, milk, 1/4 cup Parmesan, salt and pepper in large bowl to blend. Add bread cubes; toss to coat. Let stand 15 minutes. Stir in mushroom mixture. Transfer to prepared dish. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons cheese over. Bake until pudding is brown and puffed, and set in center, about 1 hour. Serve warm.