Finally a savory dish, I told you I have been doing a lot of baking lately.  I find it ironic though that the savory dish I decide to post just happens to be a bread pudding…  I have mentioned this before, but I never liked bread pudding growing up.  I found it disgusting that you could turn a loaf of bread into a dessert, it just wasn’t right.  I really didn’t start liking sweet bread puddings until a few years ago – and that was when I tried banana bread pudding, wow, was that amazing.  It was shortly after that I decided to dapple with a savory bread pudding, and what I realized was that it really was just a very moist stuffing, and who doesn’t love stuffing?

I saw this recipe in Cooking Light and there were two reasons why I just had to make it.  One, because I love stuffing, and the thought of adding ham and cheddar to the mix was one I was pretty excited about.  Second, they are served in ramekins.  Remember, I am a sucker for anything that is served in a ramekin – I don’t know what it is about that ramekin, but in my mind, anything tastes better when served in a cute little dish.  Well, they were a big hit – with everyone, including the kids.  The only problem we had was that the ramekins were just too hot for them coming out of the oven, so I had to scoop some out for them onto their plate – unfortunately they didn’t get to experience the true effect of the ramekin, but it still worked out.  So – if you are just so-so on bread pudding, this is a great one to get you started – next you will be searching online for the banana bread version…

Ingredients

• 8 ounces multigrain bread with seeds, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
• Cooking spray
• 3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions, divided
• 3/4 cup fat-free milk
• 1/4 cup fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3 ounces lower-sodium ham, minced
• 2 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
• 3 large egg whites
• 4 teaspoons reduced-fat sour cream

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375°.

Place bread cubes on a jelly-roll pan; coat with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 10 minutes or until lightly toasted, turning once. Remove from oven; cool.

Combine bread, 1/2 cup cheese, 3 tablespoons onions, and next 5 ingredients (through egg yolks) in a large bowl. Place egg whites in a small bowl, and beat with a mixer at high speed until foamy (about 30 seconds). Gently fold egg whites into bread mixture.

Spoon about 1 cup bread mixture into each of 4 (7-ounce) ramekins coated with cooking spray. Divide the remaining 1/4 cup cheese and remaining 1 tablespoon onions evenly among ramekins. Bake at 375° for 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Top each serving with 1 teaspoon sour cream.

For a printer-friendly version of this recipe, please click here:  Savory Bread Puddings with Ham and Cheddar