Last Updated on November 27, 2020

When I was a kid, one of my all time favorite desserts was coffee ice cream and hot butterscotch sauce. I’m not sure if I loved it for the slightly bitter coffee taste counterbalanced by the sweet buttery sauce or for the canned whipped cream and Day-Glo red cherries on the top.

I flatter myself that my tastes have matured as I’ve grown up, but sometimes I’m not so sure. Although I have indeed kissed off canned whipped cream and dyed cherries, this recipe still boasts that swell butterscotch and coffee combo. (Light brown sugar cooked to a caramel state provides the butterscotch taste, and the coffee is in the custard.) If you don’t want to make the sauce, coffee ice cream would be a great stand in.

Ingredients
Serves 6
12 slices homemade-style white bread, about 3/4 pound, crusts removed
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
3 cups half-and-half
1/2 teaspoon table salt
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Vanilla Sauce, recipe follows
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder

Preheat the oven to 350°F and butter six 1 1/4-cup ramekins or a shallow 2-quart ceramic or glass baking dish. Line the bottom of a baking pan large enough to snugly hold the ramekins or baking dish with a clean kitchen towel and bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. (The towel will prevent the ramekins from hitting the pan as they bake.)

Spread the bread out in a single layer on a baking sheet and place in the oven until slightly dried out, about 7 minutes. Let cool. Cut the bread into 1/2-inch cubes and divide evenly among the ramekins.

Combine the butter, sugar, and 2 tablespoons water in a large saucepan. Stir over low heat until smooth and bubbling at the edges, about 10 minutes. Add 2 cups of the half-and-half and the salt. Increase the heat to medium high and bring almost to a boil.

Whisk the eggs and egg yolks with the remaining cup of half-and-half and the vanilla in a large bowl until well blended. Slowly pour in the hot half-and-half mixture, whisking constantly. Ladle the mixture evenly into the ramekins or baking dish.

Arrange the filled ramekins or baking dish on the towel in the pan. Place the pan on the middle rack of the oven and carefully pour in enough of the boiling water to reach about halfway up the sides of the dishes. Cook until golden and set in the middle, 35 to 40 minutes for ramekins, 40 to 45 minutes for the 2-quart dish. Transfer to wire racks to cool.

Prepare the vanilla sauce as directed. Stir the espresso powder into the sauce while warm. Cool and chill before serving with the pudding.

Vanilla Sauce: Combine 2 cups whole milk and 1 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise, in a small saucepan. Heat over medium-high heat until small bubbles form around the edge. Remove from the heat, cover, and infuse the milk for 10 minutes. Scrape the seeds of the bean into the milk. Rinse and dry the bean and save for another use. Whisk 5 large egg yolks with 1/3 cup sugar and 1/8 teaspoon table salt in a large heatproof bowl until light and thick, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the hot milk. Return the custard to the pan and stir over very low heat until slightly thickened or until a finger drawn across a wooden spoon dipped in the sauce leaves a mark (abou t 160°F). Do not boil or the sauce will curdle. Strain into a large bowl and cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 2 hours. Makes 2 cups.