Quince & Muscat Bread & Butter Pudding
This is an exquisite and highly impressive dessert!!
Delicious Magazine, August 2003, p 40
(Recipe from Ali McKillop, owner/chef, The Pickled Sisters Cafe, Cofield Wines, Distillery Road, Wahgunyah, Vic. Australia)
Serves 8-10
(NB - Australian Tbs = 20 mls)
20 slices (600g) sourdough fruit loaf, toasted
3 Tbs unsalted butter
2-3 Tbs muscat, plus an extra splash (Writer used Rutherglen Muscat - (also been told Muscat Grape Juice is good, too!)
800 ml thin cream
6 free range eggs
125 gm caster sugar
Icing sugar, to dust
Thick cream, to serve (optional)
Muscat-poached quinces
1 Kg caster sugar
6 cups (1.5L) water
2 cups (500ml) muscat
Juice of 1 lemon
1 vanilla bean, slit, seeds scraped
4 quinces, peeled, cored, quartered
Preheat the oven to 150C.
To make poached quinces, place sugar, water, muscat, lemon juice and vanilla bean and seeds in a pan. Bring to boil. Remove from heat.
Place quinces in large baking dish and pour over muscat mixture.
Cover with a layer of baking paper, then a layer of foil and bake in oven for about 6 hours or until rosy in colour.
Cool, then transfer quinces to a plate.
Pour liquid into a pan and boil until reduced and syrupy. Discard vanilla bean. Set aside.
Increase oven to 180C.
Butter each slice of toast on one side. Lay half the toast, buttered-side up, in a greased
30 x 21 x 5 cm baking dish. Slice quinces, arrange over toast, then layer remaining toast, buttered-side up, on top. Splash with extra muscat. .
Combine cream, eggs and sugar and pour over top. Stand pudding for 5 minutes to allow custard to soak into bread. Bake for 30 minutes or until custard is set. Dust with icing sugar, a drizzle of Muscat syrup, and a dollop of thick cream, if desired.
