Savoury pumpkin bread pudding with charcoal cream, baked in a Harrison Oven

Savoury Pumpkin Bread Pudding With Charcoal Cream

24 August 2020

Take a lump of hot charcoal from the bottom of your Harrison Oven and infuse it in cream! Food stylist, chef, artist and food photographer Annie Nichols takes inspiration from one of our favourite chefs Niklas Ekstedt.

Savoury pumpkin bread pudding with charcoal cream, baked in a Harrison Oven

Inspired by a recipe of the Swedish Michelin starred chef Niklas Ekstedt, hot coals are infused in cream to give this unusual savoury take on a bread pudding with a light, smoky flavour. This hits all the right spots to serve as an accompaniment to game, or a roast or a holiday feast, soft and wobbly in the centre, with a crusty, crunchy top. 

Ingredients

  • 150g unsalted butter
  • 750g pumpkin, peeled and cut into thin slices
  • 2tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 shallots, finely chopped
  • Small bunch sage leaves
  • 200g taleggioof or brie, cut into small cubes
  • 300 ml milk
  • 300 ml single cream
  • 2 eggs
  • 6 slices of day-old sourdough bread
  • Sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper
Savoury Pumpkin Bread Pudding With Charcoal Cream

Method

  1. Fire up the Harrison oven to 180ºC.
  2. Melt 100g of the butter in a medium pan. Tip the pumpkin slices into a large roasting tin, pour over the oil and half of the butter. Season, toss well and spread out in a single layer.
  3. Place the tin in the oven and roast for about 25–30 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender and charred at the edges
  4. Meanwhile, place the pan of remaining melted butter back on a low to medium heat. Add the chopped shallot and cook without colour for 5 minutes.
  5. Chop half the sage, add to the pan and cook for a further 3–4 minutes or until the shallots are softened. Set aside.
  6. Pour the milk and cream into a large deep pan and drop in a few whole sage leaves. Bring to just below a boil and remove from heat.
  7. Open the oven and using tongs, lift a large wood coal from the hot embers, then gently lower into the cream and milk mix (it will spit and splatter a little).
  8. Repeat with one more coal, then cover and leave to infuse for 1-2 hours.
  9. Whisk the eggs in a bowl with the softened shallots, and once the charcoal cream has infused, pour through a fine sieve over the egg mixture, whisking all the time. Season.
  10. Lightly butter the bread slices with the 50g of remaining butter, then layer the slices in a large oven-proof dish with a few of the roasted pumpkin slices, and a few cubes of Tallegio, then pour over a little of the custard evenly onto each layer. Finish the top with slices of pumpkin a few more whole sage leaves and pour over the remaining custard. Set aside for 30 minutes.
  11. Meanwhile check the oven temperature and bring back to 180ºC.
  12. Place the dish in a roasting tin and fill halfway with boiling water. Carefully place in the Harrison oven and cook for about 20 minutes or until just cooked but still a little wobbly in the centre.
  13. Serve warm with game or a roast dinner.
Savoury Pumpkin Bread Pudding With Charcoal Cream