No matter the dish, when it comes to recipes, we’ll always trust Nigella Lawson. Even when she describes a new recipe as “so-wrong-it’s-right”, like in the case of her newest recipe — a brand new take on the British favourite bread and butter pudding.
Ideal for these chilly days, bread and butter pudding is the ultimate comfort food and, for a lot of us, brings with it nostalgia for childhood days in the school canteen or even just our grandparent’s kitchen.
Speaking of comfort food, data from Ocado has shown that there is increased demand for comfort desserts during these months with sales of bread and butter pudding rising by 30% in winter.
As for Nigella’s secret ingredient? It’s Laughing Cow cheese! Nigella says that this provides a “cheesecakey softness” with each mouthful.
Speaking of her latest recipe, created in collaboration with Ocado, Nigella said, “This recipe is a conflation of two nostalgic food memories of my childhood: Laughing Cow Cheese and Bread and Butter Pudding.”
Adding, “It’s not sophisticated, it’s not elegant, but it delivers deep comfort on dark days, and is so much more delicious than the doubters among you would ever suspect – it’s called So-Wrong-it’s-Right Bread and Butter Pudding for a reason.”
So-wrong-it’s-right bread and butter pudding recipe
If you want to try this comforting treat, Nigella’s recipe, created in collaboration with Ocado, takes just under an hour to prep and cook and if you have any doubts, Nigella urges that it’ll be worth the try saying, “I promise you that any doubts you have will be dispelled by the first melting mouthful, giving just the mildest hint of cheesecakey softness at its centre.”
Serves 4
Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 40 mins
Nigella’s tip: Allow 10 mins extra time for steeping, and 10 mins for the pudding to stand before serving.
Ingredients:
- 6 slices Hovis Medium Sliced Soft White Bread from an 800g loaf
- 6 triangles Laughing Cow Original Spread
- 50g Tate & Lyle Caster Sugar, plus 1 tsp
- 1 small unwaxed lemon, zest finely grated
- 30g Ocado Own Range Unsalted Butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
- 4 Clarence Court Burford Brown Large Eggs (not fridge-cold)
- 2½ tsp Nielsen Massey Pure Vanilla Extract
- 500ml Ocado Own Range Whole Organic Milk (not fridge-cold)
- 2½ tsp Tate & Lyle Demerara Sugar
- 4 tsp (approx.) Lyle’s Squeezy Golden Syrup, to serve (optional)
Method:
- Spread each slice of bread with a Laughing Cow triangle. Taking 1 tsp caster sugar, sprinkle lightly over 3 of the spread slices (in other words, using a third of tsp per slice) and then divide the lemon zest between those same 3 pieces of bread, scattering it over each sugar-sprinkled slice.
- Top these slices with the ones that have just Laughing Cow on them, and spread the soft butter on top of each sandwich, using a little extra butter to grease an oval baking dish (mine is 28 cm at its longest point, with a capacity of approx. 1½ litres, but you could go a little smaller). Cut each sandwich into 4 triangles and arrange them in the buttered dish. I tend to go for a slightly higgledy piggledy approach, placing some sandwiches with crusts down, some with the crusts up, but it’s really just a matter of choice (and temperament).
- Crack the 4 eggs into a wide measuring jug, add the vanilla and 50g sugar and whisk together by hand to combine and aerate. Now, whisking more gently, pour in the milk, and when it’s all combined pour over the sandwiches in their dish.
- Preheat the oven to 180ºC/160º fan/gas 4 and leave the pudding to steep for the 10 mins or so it takes the oven to get to temperature, spooning the custard over the slices every now
and again as you wait.
- Sprinkle the demerara sugar over the top and bake in the oven for 35-40 mins, by which time the custard will be just set and puffed up, and the top a pale gold.
- Leave to stand for 10 mins before serving, dribbling a little golden syrup over each bowlful, if wished