Caramel Croissant Pudding

We always think that some of the best recipes come from the thrifty refusal to throw anything away. I made this one Monday evening because I had two stale croissants left over from the weekend and just knew they could be put to good use. Now, adding cream and bourbon is probably a lot less thrifty than throwing some stale bread away in the first place, but this is such a fabulous pudding that I now think it should be done at least once a week (my mom of course disagrees!).. And with something this substantial, you certainly need eat nothing beforehand. Though a small crunchy salad may not be a bad idea at first.

Ingredients:

• 2 stale croissants
• 100 grams sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• 125 ml double cream
• 125 ml full fat milk
• 2 tablespoons bourbon (or rum)
• 2 large eggs (beaten) 

Method:

·     Preheat the oven to 180°C. Tear the croissants into pieces and put in a small gratin dish; I use a cast iron oval one with a capacity of about 500ml / 2 cups for this. Put the sugar and water into a saucepan, and swirl around to help dissolve the sugar before putting the saucepan on the hob over a medium to high heat. Caramelize the sugar and water mixture by letting it bubble away, without stirring, until it all turns a deep amber colour; this will take 3-5 minutes. Keep looking but don't be too timid. Turn heat down to low and add the cream - ignoring all spluttering - and, whisking away, the milk and bourbon. Any solid toffee that forms in the pan will dissolve easily if you keep whisking over low heat. Take off the heat and, still whisking, add the beaten eggs. Pour the caramel bourbon custard over the croissants and leave to steep for 10 minutes if the croissants are very stale. Place in the oven for 20 minutes and prepare to swoon.