Savory Vegetable Bread Pudding

A good way to use leftover bread!

This posting came from another request from Jenny. This was my way of using up two leftover 1/2 loaves of baguette. I confess this is from memory; you are really going to have to use some creative juu-juu. The vegetable filling is pretty basic – you can replace it with anything. Greens and onions, asparagus and fresh peas with perhaps some dill, and of course eggplant, zucchini, peppers, mushrooms, etc. are all tasty fillings.

You can also use different kinds of cheeses. Feta with greens or cheddar or gruyere with mushrooms would be good combos. I used parmesan here.

Ingredients:

A total of 1 baguette (I used ½ asiago cheese and ½ plain), sliced in rounds and lightly toasted

1 small onion, chopped

5-6 small zucchini, sliced into rounds

1 small red bell pepper, sliced (I think)

¾ cup finely chopped leek (green part)

olive oil

Salt & pepper

Dried thyme & oregano (you could use basil)

Kalamata olives, sliced (enough to scatter across the top)

Freshly grated parmesan cheese

Large handful of cherry tomatoes, sliced in half (enough to scatter across the top)

Fresh minced parsley

Fresh chopped chives

4 extra large eggs (I think…you can always use more if this isn’t enough!)

½ cup milk or soy milk

freshly grated nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9x13x2 baking pan. Arrange half the baguette slices on the bottom of the baking pan.

Salt the zucchini rounds lightly and put them in a strainer for 10 minutes or so. In a bit of olive oil in a skillet on medium heat, sautée the onions with a bit of salt. When the onions begin to get soft, add the leeks and peppers. Pat the zucchini dry and add the zucchini to the skillet. Stir frequently. If the pan gets too dry you can add a bit of water or veggie stock. I believe I did add some stock and I covered the veggies with a lid to let them simmer for a bit. Gently sprinkle in some thyme, oregano, and black pepper. Cook until the zucchini is soft and slightly caramelized.

Spread the vegetable filling over the bread slices. Grate fresh parmesan cheese on top. Place the other half of the toasted baguette rounds on top of the filling.

Whisk together the eggs, milk or soymilk, salt, a bit of nutmeg, and black pepper. Pour this combination over the bread & filling mixture. It should be enough to immerse the top layer of bread in custard (and if it isn’t, please make more!) Sprinkle the olives, tomatoes, chives, and parsley across the top, then add some more grated parmesan cheese.

Cover with foil and bake for 35-45 minutes until the custard is set. Let cool for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.

This is great with a fresh green salad with sunflower sprouts and a light, lemony vinaigrette and fresh herbs.

Please tell us about your versions!

Note about parmesan: I prefer to buy parmesan in blocks and I have a small hand held grater that I use to grate it as needed over any dish. The chunk of parmesan keeps well in the fridge, and the fresh stuff does taste better than pre-grated – and certainly better than anything in a can. :-)