Citrus Bread Pudding

A friend of mine left a large bag of fresh bread on my doorstep last week and I had a lot of oranges and grapefruits laying around. I needed to use them both and needed to make a dessert so I found this recipe that combined them both into a delicious and refreshing treat. I really like the technique of this recipe. It leaves the bread pudding moist and delicious. The only thing that I would amend is that the directions say to put water in the roasting half way up the baking pan the bread pudding is in. I found this to be too much water. I would use a quarter of the way up or less. There was so much water left in the roasting pan that I had a hard time getting the pudding out without getting myself and the pudding soaked. I  substituted grapefruit for the lemons which worked really well, and I used almond milk instead of the heavy cream which still gave a firm pudding without all the extra fat. I served the pudding with home made caramel sauce which was awesome too!! http://sarahsfreshlife.blogspot.com/search?q=caramel+sauce

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Ingredients

• 9 ounces (about 1 loaf) day-old French bread, crusts removed, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• 1/2 cup dark raisins
• Zest and juice of 1 lemon
• Zest and juice of 1 orange
• 8 large eggs
• 4 cups heavy cream
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature, for parchment paper
• Whipped cream, for serving (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees with a rack in the center. Place bread cubes in a shallow 2 1/2-quart baking dish; set aside. Place raisins in a small bowl. Add zests and juices; let stand 30 minutes.
2. Place eggs in a large bowl. In another large bowl, combine heavy cream, 1 cup sugar, vanilla, and nutmeg. Pour the cream mixture into eggs, whisking constantly until fully combined. Add the raisin mixture, and stir to combine. Pour over bread, making sure all the bread is thoroughly saturated. Sprinkle with remaining sugar.
3. Brush a sheet of parchment paper with butter. Place, buttered-side down, over the bread. Place baking dish in a larger roasting pan. Place in oven, and add enough water to the larger pan to come halfway up sides of baking dish. Bake 45 minutes. Uncover and bake 15 minutes more. Remove from oven and let stand 20 minutes before serving. Top with a dollop of whipped cream, if desired