Tag: Homemade Bread

  • Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding

    Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding

    This is the kind of dessert that belongs to a cold, rainy day.

    Not fancy. Not loud. Just warm bread, soft apples, cinnamon, brown sugar, and enough custard to turn what might have been leftover into something that feels intentional.

    It would pair beautifully with the Green Chile Mushroom Soup. The soup brings earth and heat. The bread beside it brings comfort. This dessert carries that comfort into something sweet.

    A quiet ending.

    Ingredients

    • 6 cups day-old bread, cubed
    • homemade bread, brioche, challah, French bread, or sandwich bread all work
    • 2 medium apples, peeled and diced
    • Honeycrisp, Gala, Fuji, or Granny Smith
    • 4 tablespoons butter, divided
    • 1/3 cup brown sugar
    • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
    • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, optional
    • Pinch of salt
    • 3 large eggs
    • 2 cups whole milk
    • 1/2 cup heavy cream
    • Or use all milk if you want it lighter
    • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
    • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

    Optional Topping

    • 2 tablespoons melted butter
    • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
    • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

    Method

    Preheat the oven to 350°F.

    Grease an 8×8-inch baking dish or a similar-sized casserole dish.

    Place the bread cubes in a large bowl.

    In a skillet over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter. Add the diced apples, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg if using, and a pinch of salt.

    Cook for 5 to 7 minutes, until the apples soften slightly and the sugar begins to turn syrupy.

    Pour the warm apples over the bread cubes and gently toss.

    In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, heavy cream, granulated sugar, and vanilla.

    Pour the custard over the bread and apples. Press the bread down gently so it can soak up the custard.

    Let it sit for 15 to 20 minutes.

    Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish.

    For the topping, mix the melted butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon together, then drizzle it over the top.

    Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the top is golden and the center is set but still soft.

    Let it rest for 10 minutes before serving.

    Optional Vanilla Glaze

    • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
    • 1 tablespoon milk or cream
    • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

    Stir together until smooth. Drizzle over the warm bread pudding just before serving.

    Notes From My Kitchen

    Day-old bread works best because it absorbs the custard without falling apart.

    This is also a good place to use any leftover homemade bread from the Green Chile Mushroom Soup meal. The bread that sat beside the bowl can come back one more time, softened with apples, cinnamon, and custard.

    For a richer dessert, use brioche or challah.

    For something more practical and still good, use whatever bread you already have.

    Add pecans or walnuts for some crunch.

    Serve it warm, plain, glazed, or with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream.

    This is not a dessert trying to impress the room.

    It is the kind that waits quietly at the end of the meal.

    Kyle J. Hayes

    kylehayesblog.com

    Please like, comment, and share

    Resources for Hard Times

    If you’re looking for practical help, food support, or community resources, you can visit the Salt, Ink & Soul Resources Page.

    👉 Resources for Hard Times

  • Green Chile Mushroom Soup

    Green Chile Mushroom Soup

    Some people in places that truly know cold may find this laughable.

    They may hear me talk about a cooler, rainy day in New Mexico and smile the way people smile when they know winter has not really shown its full hand. They may think of snow piled against doors, wind that cuts through coats, mornings where the car has to be scraped before the day can begin.

    And they would not be wrong.

    But cold is not always measured by the thermometer alone. Sometimes it is measured by what the body asks for. A gray sky. A little rain. A day that loses its sharp edges. The kind of weather that makes the house feel quieter than usual.

    That is soup weather.

    For me, one of the soups that always comes back is mushroom soup. There is something honest about it. Earthy. Deep. Not loud. Not trying to impress anyone. Mushrooms have a way of making a pot feel older than it is, as if the flavor has been waiting somewhere underground before it ever reached the skillet.

    But I live in New Mexico.

    So, of course, there has to be green chile.

    The Chile changes the soup without overwhelming it. It brings warmth, smoke, and a little edge. It reminds the mushrooms not to get too soft. It reminds the cream not to get too comfortable. It turns a simple mushroom soup into something that belongs here, in this place, under this sky.

    And then there is the bread.

    A big piece of homemade bread beside a bowl of soup feels less like an addition and more like a promise. Something to tear. Something to dip. Something to drag through the bottom of the bowl when the spoon has done all it can.

    I will link my homemade bread recipe here, because this soup deserves that kind of company.

    Green Chile Mushroom Soup

    Ingredients

    • 1 pound mushrooms, sliced
    • cremini, baby bella, or white mushrooms all work well
    • 2 tablespoons butter
    • 1 tablespoon olive oil
    • 1 small onion, diced
    • 3 cloves garlic, minced
    • 1/2 cup roasted green chile, chopped
    • mild, medium, or hot, depending on your taste
    • 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
    • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
    • 1/2 teaspoon cumin
    • 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
    • 1/4 teaspoon oregano
    • 3 tablespoons flour
    • 4 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth
    • 1 cup half-and-half or heavy cream
    • 1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack, pepper jack, or white cheddar, optional
    • 1 tablespoon lime juice
    • Cilantro, parsley, or green onion for garnish, optional

    Method

    Set a heavy pot over medium heat. Add the butter and olive oil.

    Add the mushrooms and let them cook down slowly. Do not rush them. They will release their water first, then begin to brown. Stir now and then until most of the moisture has cooked off, about 8 to 10 minutes.

    Add the onion and cook until softened, about 4 minutes.

    Add the garlic, green chile, salt, black pepper, cumin, smoked paprika, and oregano. Stir and cook for another 2 minutes, just until everything smells warm and alive.

    Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables. Stir well so the flour coats the mushrooms and chile. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes to remove the raw flour taste.

    Slowly pour in the broth, stirring as you go. Bring the soup to a gentle simmer.

    Let it cook for 15 to 20 minutes, until slightly thickened and the flavors have come together.

    Lower the heat. Stir in the half-and-half or cream. Do not let it boil hard after the cream goes in.

    For a smoother soup, blend part of it with an immersion blender, leaving some mushrooms whole for texture. For a more rustic soup, leave it as it is.

    Stir in the cheese, if using, until melted.

    Finish with the lime juice. Taste and adjust the salt.

    Serve warm, with herbs or green onion on top.

    And do not forget the bread.

    Notes From My Kitchen

    For a thicker soup, use heavy cream and cheese.

    For a lighter soup, use half-and-half and skip the cheese.

    For more heat, add extra green chile or a pinch of cayenne.

    For a heartier meal, serve it with homemade bread, toasted focaccia, cornbread, tortillas, or a grilled cheese sandwich.

    The mushrooms bring the earth.

    The green chile is a must.

    The bread makes it perfect.

    Kyle J. Hayes

    kylehayesblog.com

    Please like, comment, and share

    Resources for Hard Times

    If you’re looking for practical help, food support, or community resources, you can visit the Salt, Ink & Soul Resources Page.

    👉 Resources for Hard Times