Our Daily Bread… (continuation)

We bake all this beautiful bread. And then what? The brioche goes a little stale, the buns sit in the basket, and the question becomes, what do we do with the leftovers?

The answer, in our house, was always the same. Turkish Cinnamon Pudding.

This is my mum’s recipe. She learned it from a Turkish friend when she was living abroad, and she brought it home with her. From that point on it became one of those dishes that everyone who ever ate at our table would ask about. Not a bread pudding. Not a baked custard. Turkish Cinnamon Pudding, that was its name and that was what everyone called it when they ordered it from her.

Yesterday I made it again. But this time with a twist. I swapped condensed milk for condensed coconut milk, full cream for almond milk, and butter for olive oil. A completely dairy free version. And the result? The taste, the texture, the memories — all exactly the same. Just a little more kind to the body, I think.

This one is for everyone who has ever stood in front of a basket of leftover bread and wondered what to do with it. Here is your answer.

Turkish Cinnamon Pudding

Dairy free — Serves 8 to 10

5 cups old brioche buns, cut into cubes
330 ml condensed coconut milk
420 ml almond milk
120 ml olive oil
20 ml vanilla essence
80 ml water
5 large eggs
100 gms raw sugar
20 gms cinnamon powder
100 gms sultanas
100 gms sour cherries

For the topping
120 gms raw sugar
10 gms cinnamon powder

Step 1 — Preheat your oven to 180°C.

Step 2 — Combine all ingredients except the topping in a large bowl — the brioche cubes, condensed coconut milk, almond milk, olive oil, vanilla, water, eggs, raw sugar, cinnamon, sultanas and sour cherries. Mash everything together with a whisk until the bread breaks down and the mixture resembles a thick porridge. Don’t be afraid to really work it — you want the bread fully soaked and incorporated.

Step 3 — Pour the pudding mixture into a lined springform mould. Smooth the top, then mix together the raw sugar and cinnamon for the topping and scatter generously over the surface.

Step 4 — Bake in your preheated oven for 35 minutes, or until the pudding feels like a jiggly cheesecake when you gently touch the centre. It should have a slight wobble but not be liquid. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely — this is important, it needs to fully set before you cut into it.

Step 5 — Serve as it is, or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side. The cinnamon sugar top will have formed a beautiful caramelised crust and underneath will be the softest, warmest, most comforting thing you have eaten in a long time.

*Old brioche is ideal here because it is rich enough to hold its flavour through the bake. If your brioche is very fresh, leave the cubes out uncovered for a few hours first to dry out a little — it absorbs the custard mixture better that way. The sour cherries are non-negotiable. They cut through the sweetness perfectly and are very much part of the original recipe.

Thanks Mum. And thanks to her Turkish friend, wherever she may be.

Happy Cooking and always remember to cook with your Heart…

Stay tuned for more on this series.