Bread Pudding

"During a visit to Biloxi, Mississippi, I had dinner at The Seafood Buffet in the Grand Casino," Brenda Hill of Ann Arbor, Michigan. "The bread pudding was served with a wonderful spiced rum sauce. I'd be grateful to have the recipe for this decadent dessert."

Whole roasted chestnuts (now conveniently packed ready-to-use in jars) and creamy Fontina cheese enrich this take on a classic southern bread.

"I have never been a great fan of bread pudding, but the chocolate version at Cresheim Cottage Cafe, in Philadelphia, is outstanding," says Dan Ragland of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. "The owner (a neighbor, no less!) won't give me the recipe. Maybe you'll have more luck." Any unsweetened cocoa powder will work well, but for the richest, darkest pudding, use Valrhona. Serve this bread pudding with chocolate sauce and whipped cream.

"I recently was in Waxhaw, outside of Charlotte, and discovered a great restaurant—Dearstyne's Bistro," writes Suzanne Hoover of New Hill, North Carolina. "I would love to know how to make the chocolate bread pudding." This version of the classic dessert has more custard and less bread than usual, giving the pudding a softer texture.

This low-fat recipe won a contest that included mostly high-fat desserts.

Active time: 3 hr Start to finish: 4 hr

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Ella Brennan, who has been called the "queen of Creole cuisine," tasted her first bread pudding long ago. "It was my mother's," she says. "You never had anything like it." These days, people say the same thing about the bread pudding at Brennan's famous Commander's Palace restaurant in New Orleans. "Our bread pudding soufflé outsells all of our other desserts by ten to one, maybe a hundred to one," she says. "We see people swoon over it." Here's a new take on this hall-of-fame comfort dessert: a pumpkin bread pudding that is served cold, except for the sugar sprinkled on top and browned under the broiler just before the sensational dessert goes to the table.

Taste your muffin before you begin to prepare the recipe. If it is not very sweet, you can add another 1/2 tablespoon of molasses. Active time: 10 min Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr

The recipe for this bread pudding was created by the Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania's Central Bar & Grill's former pastry chef, Alison Barshak. She is now the executive chef at Striped Bass in Philadelphia.

Capirotada The cheese in this recipe melts into the pudding and contributes more texture than flavor.

Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 1 1/2 hr

In this version of the classic holiday dessert, a croissant bread pudding is steamed in the oven instead of on the stove top. Ignite the finished product in front of the guests for maximum effect.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

A terrific family recipe for a classic dessert.

We found this recipe in Austin Leslie's cookbook. It is from his mother, Ruby — she was Aunt Helen's sister and assisted her at Chez Helene and its predecessor, Howard's Eatery. Although Leslie served the bread pudding with a rum hard sauce, we prefer it with a dollop of crème fraîche.