Chocolate Bread Pudding

When I was a kid, my grandmother made bread pudding every Thanksgiving and Christmas. My job was to cream the butter and sugar by hand. I hated, it, really hated it. Creaming the butter and sugar was hard work and it made my arm hurt. My grandmother's whiskey sauce for her bread pudding was amazing! Her bread pudding was phenomenal according to the family bread pudding experts, but her whiskey sauce did it for me! As my grandmother got older, her whiskey sauce got stronger. I had to have my serving of bread pudding with her wonderful whiskey sauce even if it made my eyes water just a bit.

Since my grandmother isn't around anymore, bread pudding isn't something I crave or ever attempted to make until I saw Paula Deen make this heavenly Chocolate Bread Pudding!

This bread pudding is light and will satisfy your chocolate craving.

1 loaf French cut into cubes
3 cups milk
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup Kahlua or coffee flavored liqueur

1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons pure almond extract
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
6 large eggs, lightly beaten
8 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Lightly grease a 13 by 9-inch baking dish. Place the bread cubes in the baking dish.

In a large bowl, whisk together the milk, cream, and Kahlua.

In another bowl, combine the granulated and brown sugars with the cocoa powder and mix well. Add this to the milk mixture and whisk to combine.

Add the vanilla and almond extracts and the cinnamon to the beaten eggs. Combine the egg mixture with the milk mixture and mix well. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour the mixture evenly over the bread cubes; let stand, stirring occasionally, for at least 20 minutes, or until the bread has absorbed most of the milk mixture. Bake the pudding for 1 hour, or until set; a knife inserted into the center of the pudding should come out clean. Serving the pudding warm, or refrigerate it and serve chilled.

Serve it warm or cold, with whipped cream or a dessert sauce. You will definitely want to add this to your holiday dessert list.