CHOCOLATE BREAD PUDDING "DANIELLE"

Prep Time: 2 Hours
Yields: 6–8 Servings

Comment:
Bread pudding is considered the "apple pie" of South Louisiana. Because of our heavy French influence, crusty French bread is abundant. Our German population gave us a good supply of milk and eggs. The combination of these cultures and their ingredients gave us one of our premier desserts. I named this chocolate bread pudding after a very brave little girl, Danielle LeCompte, of New Iberia, Louisiana. Danielle has a brain stem tumor and has undergone 31 radiation treatments at St. Jude hospital. Her dream is to be a chef when she grows up. Since Danielle loves chocolate, this bread pudding is just what the doctor ordered.

Ingredients:
5 ounces white chocolate
4 ounces chocolate chips
2 (10-inch) loaves French bread
4 eggs
6 egg yolks
4 cups heavy whipping cream
1 cup milk
1 cup sugar

Method:
Slice French bread into ½-inch thick round croutons and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together eggs and egg yolks. Set aside. In a large saucepan, combine cream, milk and sugar. Bring mixture to a low simmer then add white chocolate and chocolate chip. Whisk until chocolate is completely melted. Remove pot from heat and quickly stir in whisked eggs. Blend thoroughly to keep eggs from scrambling. In a 9" x 13" baking dish, place bread slices in 2–3 layers. Pour half of cream mixture over bread. Press bread gently, allowing cream mixture to be absorbed evenly into bread. Once most of mixture has been soaked up, pour remaining cream over bread and press gently. Cover dish with foil and let soak a minimum of 5 hours prior to baking. Preheat oven to 300°F. Bake, covered, approximately 1 hour. Remove foil and bake 45 additional minutes or until top is golden brown. This bread pudding is best chilled in refrigerator overnight then cut into squares and heated in individual portions in microwave. If desired, create a white chocolate sauce for topping bread pudding by combining 8 ounces melted white chocolate and 3 ounces heavy whipping cream. This may be done in a double boiler or microwave.