Bread Pudding with Vanilla Ice Cream and Praline Sauce

This is by far my favorite bread pudding!  The praline sauce is amazing and can be used alone on ice cream.  The combination of the creamy bread pudding and sweet praline sauce is DIVINE!

Ingredients

Unsalted butter, room temperature

• 1 loaf (1 1/2 pounds) cinnamon swirl bread
• 2/3 cup golden raisins
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 4 cups milk
• 2 cups whipping cream
• 1/4 cup vanilla extract
• 8 Eggs, beaten
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Whipped cream and ice cream
• Plantation praline sauce (see recipe)

Coat bottom and sides of 13-by-9-inch baking pan heavily with the butter.

Tear bread into 1-inch pieces. Mix with raisins in bowl. Lay bread mixture evenly in prepared dish, turning crust side down, as this tends to burn easily.

In bowl, whisk sugar, milk, whipping cream, vanilla, eggs and cinnamon until blended. Pour over bread mixture.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Place baking dish in larger 4-inch deep baking pan. Add water to reach halfway up side of dish. Bake in preheated oven 1 hour.

Remove from water bath. Let stand 20 minutes.

Cut pudding into 9 portions and put into large dessert bowls. Add a scoop of ice cream next to the pudding, then spoon 3 to 4 ounces of warm praline sauce over the pudding and the ice cream. Top with whipped cream if desired. 

Praline Sauce

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter (divided)

3/4 cup chopped pecans

1 1/2 pounds light brown sugar (about 3 1/4 cups packed)

3/4 cup whipping cream

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 1/4 Cups sour cream

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

To make this sauce, it is very important to follow the directions carefully and to use a candy thermometer.

In large saucepan, heat 1/2 cup of the butter until melted. Add pecans and mix well. Bring to a boil.

Cook until pecans begin to change color. Mixture will foam up.

Add remaining 1/2 cup cubed butter and mix well. This will cool pecan mixture and stop the cooking process. Remove from heat.

Combine brown sugar, whipping cream and cinnamon in a saucepan and mix well. Cook over low heat until blended, stirring constantly; increase heat. Cook to 230 degrees on a candy thermometer. Stir in pecan mixture. Add sour cream and vanilla and mix well. Remove from heat.

Voila!!