Do some songs just remind you of certain moments?

Like for me, Anberlin will always remind me of high school. Especially when “Pray Tell” kept running through my head during my Calc BC test junior year.

“Beautiful People” by Marilyn Manson (or any song by him) will always remind me of Drama 16…the parts that I did manage to stay awake in, at least. (Thanks N and W for being my friends in this class!)

“Souvenirs” will always remind me of finals week, fall quarter, freshman year…and basically what really sparked my Switchfoot obsession.

“Holding my World” by Kristin Stanfill will remind me of when I got rejected from UCLA. Truth that I needed, though. More on that later.

I think baking is the same way. There are just some things that hold so much significance to them.

Asian steamed buns will always remind me of my childhood, because that was something I always made with my mom.

Oatmeal raisin cookies will always remind me of my grandpa, because that was his favorite, and every time he visited, I made sure he had a batch of those waiting for him.

Cinnamon rolls will remind me of my apartment, Samoas my sister, cheesecake my mom, etc. There’s something to everything.

This one does the same, and it’ll always remind me of work.

I remember this one day I was sitting at the table in our office kitchen with my coworkers, and I was telling them how I couldn’t think of what to do for the letter “i.” I’m doing this whole entire alphabet thing based on the main ingredient/flavor. For example, if I made Thin Mints Cupcakes (which I did actually, post coming…eventually), they’d be filed for the letter “t” and not “c” because Thin Mints is the main ingredient. I couldn’t think of a main ingredient that started with “i.”

…Anyways, my coworker T suggested this bread pudding recipe that used Baileys and chocolate. I had no idea what Baileys was, and she explained that it was this Irish cream liquor with a coffee flavor. She gave me the recipe, the Baileys, and the idea for this post. I don’t think you’ll ever read this, T, but this one’s for you! =)

I was a little iffy about bread pudding because I’d much rather eat the bread by itself (I’m a major carbs fan, in case I haven’t mentioned it yet). But I figured that this would be a good addition to this alphabet mix, so I went for it. The end result? YUM. A little too rich for my taste, but definitely comforting. French bread cubes soaked in a custard, mixed with white and dark chocolate chips, baked in little ramekins to perfection, then topped with a sweet Irish cream sauce. I think it’d go really well with vanilla ice cream too! But I didn’t have any…boo.

Three notes though, 1) More dark chocolate chips next time, and maybe less white chocolate chips, 2) You can get little Irish cream bottles at BevMo! You need two of those little bottles (they’re so cute!). You won’t use all of it, but I just poured the leftover liquor into the custard sauce, and 3) Less Irish cream sauce. I’d probably cut that part of the recipe in half because I had so much leftover. I didn’t want it too rich, so I didn’t drizzle as much cream sauce over the bread pudding. It’s your call though. If you cut the cream sauce recipe in half, you have some Irish cream liquor to put into the custard sauce.

Irish Cream Bread Pudding
Makes 8 ramekins
Adapted From Epicurious

Ingredients:

For the Sauce:
1 cup whipping cream
3 tablespoons Irish cream liquor (Baileys)
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon water

For the bread pudding:
14 cups 3/4-inch cube French bread with crust (about 12 ounces)
4 ounces white chocolate, chopped or chips
8 ounces dark chocolate, chopped or chips
4 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar, separated
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups whipping cream, separated
1/2 cup whole milk

1. For the sauce: Bring the cream, liquor, sugar, and vanilla to boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. Mix the cornstarch and 1 teaspoon water in a small bowl to blend, then whisk it into the cream mixture. Boil until the sauce thickens, stirring constantly, about 3 minutes. Cool, cover, and refrigerate until cold, at least 2 hours.

2. For the bread pudding: Combine the bread and chocolates in a large bowl, and toss to blend. In another large bowl, beat the eggs, 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, vanilla, and leftover Irish cream liquor. Gradually beat in 1 1/2 cups cream and milk. Add the cream mixture to the bread mixture, and stir to combine. Really combine it so the bread can soak in all the custard. Let it stand for at least 30 minutes.

3. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare the ramekins by spraying with nonstick spray. Scoop the bread mixture into the prepared ramekins (or if you want, a 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish). Drizzle with remaining 1/2 cup cream, and sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Bake the pudding until the edges are golden and the custard is set in center, about 1 hour. Let the pudding cool slightly.

4. Drizzle the pudding with the Irish cream sauce, and serve warm. Enjoy!