Savoury Bread Pudding

Standing time: 20 minutes
Cooking time approx: 35 minutes
Oven temperature 190c/Gas 5
Serves approx: 4

Ingredients

• A little Butter to grease a 2 litre ovenproof dish
• A little oil for frying the Leek
• 6 Medium slices of wholemeal Bread, cut into triangles 
• 1 Large Leek, thinly sliced
• 125g Smoked Cooked Ham, roughly chopped
• 150g Mature Cheddar Cheese, grated
• 3 Eggs, beaten
• 600ml (1 pint) Semi Skimmed Milk
• Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Method

• Pre-heat the oven
  
• Lightly grease your ovenproof dish with a little butter
  
• Add a little oil to a frying pan and gently fry the sliced leek for 8 minutes or until soft
  
• Layer half of the bread on the base of your ovenproof dish
  
• Scatter half the leeks and all of the ham on top
  
• Sprinkle on half of the cheese
  
• Layer the rest of the bread on top
  
• Season the milk with a little black pepper, beat the eggs into the milk, then pour evenly over the bread.
  
• Scatter the rest of the leeks on top and then sprinkle the rest of the cheese over the top
  
• Cover the dish and leave to stand for 20 minutes, to allow the bread to soak up the eggy milk mixture.
  
• Take the cover off and bake the Savoury Pudding for 30-35 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
  

Tips

• Let the bread dy out on a rack for a few hours before using it if possible. It will soak up the eggy milk mixture better if it’s dry.
  
• You can use white bread if you prefer
  
• If you’re not keen on smoked cooked ham you can use any cooked ham of your choice
  
• If you want to reduce the fat content you can use a low fat cheddar cheese instead
  

This recipe is a good way of making a tasty meal out of stale bread. You can also use leftover gammon from a joint instead of ham.