Alcohol & Bread Pudding

Up here, the counties are dry... sort of. You can find wine and beer nearly anywhere. But finding hard liquor is difficult. It can only be sold in liquor stores. The closest one to us, not counting our neighbor's house, is a place called Liq-O-Rama. They carry it all, from hard liquor to beer and wine. But it's probably 25 minles away. My husband went awhile back and came home with over $100 worth of liquor! I'm sure they though he was an alcoholic, but where else am I to find brandy and sherry for cooking and Southern Comfort to make sauce for my bread puddings?

Now, being from South Louisiana, I was used to seeing drive-through daiquiri stores. Tiny shops with a drive-through window on each side who served daiquiris to go. They put a sticker over the straw hole so you're not tempted to pierce the lid with your straw on the way home, which would be drinking while driving. And you quickly learn to wipe off your lipstick before you lift the lid to take a sip. But I digress...

Up here, we see Beer Barns. Big rectangle metal buiildings with a garage door on each short end. You drive through and they load beer into your trunk for you. You can see the glass refrigerators inside lining the inner walls, and beer logo neon signs hand from the ceiling. They sell beer in bottles, cans, and kegs, as well as bag ice and ice chests. The locals call them "brew throughs." I call them genius. Imagine not even having to leave your car to drive away with an ice chest full of iced-down beer! If beer is your thing, I suspect brew-through service would be wonderful.

So, all in all, I'm guessing the majority of alcoholics up here drink beer and wine. Liquor is just too hard to get!

And speaking of Southern Comfort whisky, here is my very own bread pudding recipe, comeplete with Scouthern Comfort whisky sauce. I like the SC in it because it's kind of sweet, and not too strong. Next time you have a couple ends of bread getting stale, make this! It's best with a hearty sourdough or french bread, as opposed to sandwich bread. You can also had a couple handfuls of coconut, raisins, or pecans to it, if you like that sort of thing in your bread pudding.

Serendipity's Almost-Famous Sourdough Bread Pudding with Southenrn Comfort Sauce
4 cups milk
4 eggs
¾ cup brown sugar
1 Tbsp. melted butter
¼ tsp. kosher salt
2 tsp. vanilla
about 6 cups stale sourdough bread cubes

In a large bowl, whisk milk, eggs, sugar, butter, salt, and vanilla together. Place bread cubes into a greased 9"x13" baking dish, and pour milk mixture on top. Press bread lightly with back of spoon to make sure liquid is absorbed. You want the bread cubes moist, but not sitting in a soup.

Bake at 350ºF for about an hour. You can place bread pudding dish in a water bath, if you like, but it's not necessary. Serve warm with Southern Comfort Whisky Sauce on top.

To make the Southern Comfort Sauce: In a small saucepan, place ½ cup brown sugar, ¼ water, and 3 Tbsp. of butter. Bring this to a boil, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, and then stir in 2-3 oz. of Southern Comfort whisky. Stir well and ladle over warm bread pudding.