Pumpkin Bread Pudding

I know there are some poor, misguided souls who don't like pumpkin. My sister is one of them.

Fair warning: This post is not for you.

It's hard to be a pumpkin hater at this time of year because everyone (me included) thinks that pumpkin is the ingredient of choice. I usually try to consider this affliction when making fall desserts for gatherings. But this time, pumpkin won.

I made this Pumpkin Bread Pudding for a recent Nu Lambda meeting. All that warm, bread pudding deliciousness just seems like a dessert for fall, doesn't it? And when you add pumpkin to it? It just increases the autumn dessert quotient exponentially.

Enjoy! (Unless you're a pumpkin hater. Then you should fix something else.)

Pumpkin Bread Pudding

4 1/2 cups croissants, cut into large cubes
6 eggs
4 egg yolks
1 1/4 cups brown sugar, divided
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/8 tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups milk
1 pint whipping cream
15-oz. can pumpkin
1/2 cup pecan halves
Optional: Butter Sauce and Ice Cream

Arrange croissant cubes evenly in a 13- by 9-inch pan sprayed with nonstick vegetable spray. Place eggs and yolks in a mixer bowl; beat on low speed until well blended. Add 3/4 cup brown sugar, spices, salt and vanilla; mix until combined. Add milk, cream and pumpkin; mix well. Pour over croissant cubes; stir briefly so that cubes are moistened. Sprinkle remaining brown sugar and pecans on top of cubes. Bake at 350 degrees until custard is set and knife inserted in center comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Serve warm.

Top with homemade butter sauce and ice cream, if desired. (I used a Caramel Crunch frozen yogurt.)

Butter Sauce

1/2 cup butter (no substitutes)
1 cup sugar (Can be part or all brown sugar, though I used regular sugar this time)
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 tsp. vanilla

Bring butter, sugar and whipping cream to a boil. Let it boil for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla. Serve warm over bread pudding, apple cake, ice cream, etc. Store leftover sauce in refrigerator, and rewarm to serve.