All those peaches from Jaemor Farms were wonderful, but we bought too many. As they got riper, I frantically started looking for recipes, besides ice cream, where I could use our bounty of peaches. Fortunately, my Southern Living Magazine was waiting to be read and it was full of recipes for peaches. I love bread pudding, so this recipe really stood out. I must warn you to read the recipe carefully. I know it sounds tedious, but it really isn’t. However, I did make one mistake in my execution. I missed the step about separating the eggs. Not a huge error, but one that caused me to use 4 extra eggs to get the egg whites to fold in. This might have been a fatal error in a less forgiving recipe, but fortunately, not this one.

So, on request, here is the recipe for Peach Bread Pudding. I hope you enjoy it as much as my family has.

Bread Pudding

• 5 Large Eggs, Separated
• 1 Cup Whole Milk
• 1 Tbsp. Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. Kosher salt
• 2 Cups Heavy Cream
• 2/3 Cup Granulated Sugar
• 1 (16-oz.) Challah Bread Loaf, Cut into 1-inch cubes (about 11 1/2 Cups)
• 3-4 Fresh Peaches
• 4 Tbsp. Salted Butter, cut into small pieces, plus more for dish

Bourbon Caramel

• 2 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter
• 1/4 Cup Water
• 1 Cup Granulated Sugar
• 1 Cup Heavy Cream, at room temperature
• 2 Oz.(1/4 Cup) Bourbon

1. Prepare The Bread Pudding: Whisk together egg yolks, milk, vanilla extract, cinnamon, salt, 2 cups heavy cream, and 2/3 cup granulated sugar in a large bowl until thoroughly combined. Add bread pieces and toss to coat pieces evenly. Cover and chill 8 to 12 hours(I only waited 4 hours) to allow bread to absorb the liquid.
2. Preheat oven to 350 F. Chop peaches into small cubes. (You should have about 6 1/2 cups). Beat egg whites with electric mixer, until soft peaks form. Remove soaked bread from refrigerator; stir in 4 Tbls. butter pieces and chopped peaches. Fold in whipped egg whites until combined. Transfer mixture to a well-greased 13 x 9-inch baking dish or large cast-iron skillet. ( you can use butter or Pam on the pan. Cover loosely with foil and bake in pre-heated oven until it puffs in the center, about 45 minutes. Remove foil, and bake until the top is lightly browned, 25 to 30 minutes.
3. Prepare the Bourbon Caramel: Melt 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high, stir in water and 1 cup sugar. Cook without stirring until mixture is medium brown, 4 to 6 minutes. Carefully whisk in 1 cup heavy cream. (Mixture will bubble up as the cream is added.) Remove from heat, and whisk in bourbon. Sauce will be somewhat thin, but will slightly thicken over time. Serve sauce warm with Bread Pudding.

(Recipe courtesy of Southern Living)