Savory Bread and Butter Pudding

A satisfying main course dish that brings out the best in cheddar cheese.

Vegetarian. Hands-on time: 10 mins. Total time: 1 hour.

Contributed by Mike Lewis (February 2009).

This unusual cheese dish is both satisfying and nutritious. It is based on a traditional British dessert recipe in which egg and bread are baked with fruit and spices, but this savory version is made without the fruit, using cheese, tomatoes and garlic instead. It's also an excellent way of using up slightly stale bread.

Served with potatoes and vegetables, the quantities given here will make a main course dish for five to six people.

Ingredients

• 4 tomatoes, cut into quarters
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 5 thick slices of wholemeal bread
• butter
• 5 eggs
• ½ cup (4 fl oz, 120 ml) heavy (double) cream
• 1 cup (2 oz, 50 g) strong cheddar cheese, grated

Method

Oven: Pre-heat to 350F (180C)

Place the tomatoes and garlic in a roasting pan and sprinkle over the olive oil. Roast for 20 minutes.

Place the cooked tomatoes at the bottom of an oiled oven-proof dish. Butter the bread, cut the slices into quarters, and arrange these in overlapping layers on top of the tomatoes.

Beat the eggs. Stir in the cream and about three quarters of the cheese. Pour this mixture over the bread, then sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.

Bake for 30 minutes.

Note on quantities and temperatures:
Quantities are given in American (cups), imperial (oz, fl oz) and metric (g, ml) units. Do not mix the units - use one or other system throughout the recipe.
See also How much does a cup weigh?
oz = ounces, fl oz = fluid ounces, g = grams, ml = milliliters, tsp = teaspoons, tbsp = tablespoons.
Oven temperatures are given in degrees F (Fahrenheit) and C (Celsius).
For fan-assisted ovens, reduce the temperature by 20F or 10C.