If you find yourself with a leftover croissant, don’t stick it in the freezer.

Here’s a delicious way to use to use it, from Sun Basket.

Bread pudding is a flexible dish. You can serve it at brunch, or as a dessert for lunch or dinner.

For a snack, it hits the spot with a cup of coffee or tea.

And this recipe is a triple comfort food: chocolate, custard pudding and buttery croissants.

You can enhance the bread pudding with caramel or chocolate sauce, even use it as the base of a hot fudge sundae.

Or, make it seasonal with a garnish of spiced nuts or candied nuts, and/or dried or chopped fresh fruits (photo #4).

More ways to make bread pudding more festive:

 
Here’s the featured recipe, with links to more bread pudding recipes below.
 
 
RECIPE: CHOCOLATE-CROISSANT BREAD PUDDING

Ingredients For 2 Servings

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the oven to 350°F. Cut the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds onto a small plate or bowl. Set aside the bean and seeds.

2. COMBINE the cream, vanilla bean and seeds in a small saucepan over medium heat. Season with a pinch of salt, whisking occasionally, until small bubbles appear around the edges and steam begins to rise. Immediately remove from the heat. But while the cream mixture warms…

3. PREPARE the egg yolks to make the custard. Set out a medium and a small bowl. Crack 1 egg at a time and separate the yolk and white. Place the yolks in the medium bowl and the whites in the small bowl. You won’t be using the whites in this recipe, so save the whites for another use (add to scrambled eggs or omelets, or these uses for egg whites).

4. ADD the sugar to the egg yolks and whisk until smooth. Whisking constantly, slowly pour the hot cream mixture into the yolk mixture in a thin stream, whisking until well combined. Pour the custard through a fine-mesh strainer into a pitcher or bowl. Discard the vanilla bean and set the custard aside.

5. TEAR or cut the croissant into 1-inch pieces. Coarsely chop the chocolate. Arrange the croissant pieces in an even layer in a small baking dish or large ramekin, then scatter the chocolate on top. Pour the custard over the croissant and chocolate. Place the small baking dish or large ramekin inside a medium baking dish and place both baking dishes in the oven.

6. POUR warm tap water into the medium baking dish, using a pitcher or kettle, filling it one-fourth full to create a water bath for the bread pudding. Cover both baking dishes with a sheet pan or aluminum foil. Bake until the custard is set, 20 to 25 minutes.

7. REMOVE from the oven, carefully remove the small baking dish from the water bath, and let cool to warm before transferring to individual plates or bowls and serving.
 

MORE BREAD PUDDING RECIPES

 
 
> THE HISTORY OF BREAD PUDDING
 
 
> THE HISTORY OF CROISSANTS
 
 
> THE HISTORY OF PUDDING
 
 
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*Truth to tell, we added extra chocolate.

[1] Milk Chocolate Bread Pudding, made with a leftover croissant (photo © Sun Basket), a premium meal delivery service focusing on organic and clean ingredients.

[2] This Mushroom Bread Pudding with gruyere and radicchio shows that bread pudding can be savory, too. Here’s the recipe (photo © Good Eggs).

[3] How about a seasonal bread pudding: Pumpkin Bread Pudding With Bourbon Sauce? Here’s the recipe (photo © Go Bold With Butter).

[4] Bread pudding garnished with raisins and candied walnuts. You can pass the garnishes in a bowl, along with a bowl of mascarpone or whipped cream (photo © Mackenzie Ltd).