Peaches and Cream Bread Pudding with Amaretto Sauce

Ingredients

For the pudding:

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus 4 tablespoons melted
• 6 cups 1-inch cubes of day-old bread
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 2 cups milk
• 2 pounds peaches, peeled and seeded, cut into 1-inch chunks
• 1 cup sugar
• 5 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

For the sauce:

• 1 stick butter
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 egg yolks
• 1/3 cup amaretto

Directions

For the Bread Pudding: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 10 by 14-inch baking dish with 1 tablespoon of the softened butter.

In a large bowl, combine the bread cubes, heavy cream and milk and let sit for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While the bread is soaking, heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of softened butter in a large skillet and, when butter begins to bubble, add the peaches and 1/4 cup of the sugar. Cook, stirring occasionally, until peaches are golden brown around the edges and softened, 4 to 6 minutes. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the eggs, the remaining 3/4 cup of sugar, vanilla, and nutmeg and whisk well to combine. Stir the egg mixture into the bread mixture and fold to combine. Add the warm peaches and fold gently but thoroughly to combine. Pour into the prepared dish. Drizzle with the melted butter and bake until golden brown, puffed, and slightly firm when pressed in the center, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Cool on a wire rack until just warm, about 20 minutes.

For the Amaretto Sauce: In a small, heavy enameled or other non-reactive saucepan over medium low heat, add the butter and cook until melted. In a small bowl combine the cream, sugar, and egg yolks and whisk to combine. Add the cream mixture to the melted butter and stir well. Cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens and coats the back of a spoon, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat immediately and add the amaretto. Transfer sauce to a small heatproof bowl and serve hot or warm over warm bread pudding.