Recipe: Chocolate-Orange Bread Pudding

Ingredients
Yield: 6-8 servings
go 4-5 cups challah or brioche bread, cubed (fresh or day-old)
go 2 cups whole milk
go 1 cup heavy whipping cream
go Zest of 2 oranges
go 10 1/2 ounces white chocolate, melted
go 3 large eggs
go 3 large egg yolks
go 1/2 cup sugar
go 1/2 teaspoon salt
go 1 tablespoon Cointreau or orange liqueur
go 5 ounces dark chocolate, chopped roughly


Preparation:
go Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8-cup soufflé dish or an 8-inch baking pan with at least 2-inch sides.
go To toast the bread, place the cubes in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for 15-17 minutes, stirring halfway through. Set aside to cool in the baking sheet.
go To make the custard, in a medium saucepan, bring the milk, 1/2 cup of cream, and the orange zest just to a boil over medium high heat. Remove from the heat and set aside for 15 minutes.
go In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, yolks, sugar, the remaining cream, salt, and orange liqueur. Stir in the warm milk mixture. Stir in the melted white chocolate.
go Layer the toasted bread cubes and dark chocolate in the prepared pan. Using a fine-meshed sieve, strain the custard over the bread, pressing the bread down with your hands as you pour. Press the bread down into the custard so that it is covered by the custard. Set aside for 15 minutes so that the custard can soak into the bread.
go Sprinkle the top of the custard with about 2 tablespoons of sugar. Place the custard into a larger baking pan and fill the larger baking pan with hot water. The water should come up at least halfway on the sides of the custard-filled pan. This is a water bath. Carefully place the pans in the oven.
go Bake the custard for about 50-60 minutes or until a knife inserted into the middle comes out clean. Serve warm or at room temperature.