Cinnamon Swirl Blueberry Bread Pudding

Okay so the name sounds long, but we altered an original blueberry bread pudding recipe with cinnamon swirl bread instead of the traditional day-old baguette and the result was delectable! The cinnamon bread really makes a big difference because its sweetness combined with the tartness of the blueberries is amazing...trust us! We highly recommend this, especially because its great for dessert or breakfast and is a tasty deviation from the traditional bread pudding with raisins. Enjoy! 


Ingredients: 
1/2 tsp lemon zest (optional)
2 cups fresh (or frozen & thawed) blueberries
3 tbs. powdered sugar
3 cups of milk (we used 1%)
3 large eggs
1/2 loaf-3/4 loaf stale Cinnamon Bread*
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

*We used our local favorite Greenlees Best Cinnamon Bread, it is all-natural and, as most people know, absolutely delicious on its own*

Directions:

(1) Preheat oven to 350 and grase an 11 x 7 in. baking dish

(2) Whisk together the milk, eggs, sugar, extracts, and zest. 

(3) Tear up the 1/2-3/4 loaf of cinnamon bread and place it in a separate bowl. 

(4) Once all the bread has been torn (this process is similar to a "rough chop" the pieces don't need to be any certain size. In fact, odd size pieces is probably better!) and placed into the bowl, add the milk mixture and let stand for 15 minutes. 

(5) As the bread soaks, toss the blueberries with the powdered sugar and stir into the bread mixture once it has set. 

(6) Pour into the prepared baking dish and bake for about an hour, or until the bread pudding is set and lightly browned on top *ours took about an hour and a half so monitor it after an hour*

(7) let cool for 5 minutes and serve warm

Yummy!