Bread Pudding With Dried Cranberries, Vanilla, And Mint

Total Time: 5 hrs Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 4 hrs 30 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 1 cup dried cranberries (about 5 ounces)
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 1/4 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
• 5 fresh mint sprigs
• 1 vanilla bean, split
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1.5 (3 ounce) envelopes unflavored gelatin
• six 2 1/2-inch rounds challah
• 1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam

Recipe

• 1 put the dried cranberries in a small bowl and cover with 1/2 cup of warm water. set aside to plump for about 20 minutes.
• 2 preheat the oven to 325°. in a medium saucepan, combine the milk, heavy cream, lemon zest, orange zest and 4 mint sprigs. scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the milk and add the bean to the saucepan. bring to a boil over moderate heat. remove from the heat and stir for a few minutes to cool slightly. whisk in the sugar and the gelatin and set aside for 3 minutes, then whisk again. strain the mixture into a heatproof measuring cup.
• 3 drain the cranberries and divide them among six 1/2-cup ramekins set on a baking sheet. stir the milk mixture once and pour it over the cranberries, filling the ramekins. top each with a challah round. bake the puddings for 20 minutes, or until the custard is bubbling and still wobbly. remove from the oven.
• 4 preheat the broiler. broil the puddings for about 30 seconds just to toast the bread rounds.
• 5 let the custards cool, then refrigerate until completely set, at least 4 but not more than 6 hours.
• 6 just before serving, melt the raspberry jam in a small nonreactive skillet over low heat. run a knife around the inside of each ramekin to loosen the bread puddings and invert them onto dessert plates.
• 7 spoon a little of the raspberry jam over and around them. garnish each plate with a few mint leaves from the remaining sprig and serve.