Gary Rhodes'S Bread & Butter Pudding - cooking recipe

Ingredients

12 slices white bread, crusts remove and buttered with
50 g unsalted butter, softened
8 egg yolks
175 g caster sugar
1 vanilla pod or 3 -5 drops vanilla essence
300 ml milk
300 ml double cream
25 sultanas (1 ounce)
25 g raisins
caster sugar, to finish

Preparation

Grease a 1.7 (3pint) litre pudding basin with butter.
First make the custard:
Whisk the egg yolks and caster sugar. Split the vanilla pod and place in a pan with the milk and cream. Bring the milk and cream to the simmer, then sieve onto the egg yolks, stirring all the time.
Then:
Arrange the bread in layers in the prepared basin, sprinkling the sultanas and raisins in between layers. Finish with a final layer of bread without any fruit on top as this tends to burn. The warm egg mixture may now be poured over the bread and cooked straightaway or pour the custard over the pudding then leave it to soak for 20 minutes before cooking as it allows the bread to take on a new texture and have the flavours all the way through. So says Gary.
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas4.
Put the dish in roasting tray three-quarters filled with warm water and place in the oven. Cook for about 20-30 minutes until it begins to set. We're not aiming for a thick custard here - says Gary.
When ready, remove from the water bath, sprinkle liberally with caster sugar to cover and glaze under the grill on medium heat, until the sugar dissolves and caramelizes.