Bread Pudding

Little Jens loves bread pudding. I made some for our Sunday dessert and he ate and ate and ate. Julie is going to make it for him for his birthday instead of cake which he does not like. Here is the recipe I have. I had one from Grandma Smith which was much like this one. Of course, it was mostly an adventure to cook following the old recipes. It was "butter the size of an egg, a large handful of sugar, a pinch of salt, a sprinkle of nutmeg," etc. Great-grandmother Mina had larger hands than mine and Grandma Smith had smaller ones, so whose handful was best?

Amish Bread Pudding (I think ours was English Bread Pudding since the Smiths were ENGLISH and were proud to eat that way!)

2 cups of half and half milk (or thick milk which was probably just whole milk so I used a pint of whipping cream I had and the rest skim milk)

1/4 cup butter

2/3 cup brown sugar

6 eggs

2 tsp. cinnamon

1/8 to 1/4 nutmeg (a sprinkle)

1 tsp. vanilla

12 buttered bread slices, cubed

1/2 cup raisins (optional and I didn't use them)

Beat eggs together slightly using a fork. Add all ingredients, except butter and bread cubes. (So combine milk, sugar, eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla.) Place bread cubes in a buttered 9- by 13-inch pan. Pour liquid mixture on top. Mix lightly to make certain the bread is coated. Top with dots of butter. Bake at 350-degrees for 45 minutes or until done. Test using the knife method.