Blueberry and Orange Bread and Butter Pudding

This turned out to be a very tasty version of bread and butter pudding, which is traditionally made with dried vine fruits. I also reduced the fat content of a traditional recipe by only using a little melted butter to grease the baking dish and drizzle over the top of the layers of bread to give some crunch when baked. Usually each slice of bread is spread with butter.


This recipe will make 4 generous portions, or 6 portions for those with more delicate appetites!

Ingredients
25g butter, melted
5 - 6 slices bread from a large loaf, not too thinly sliced (optional - remove crusts).
120g orange curd - approximately
zest of 1 orange, finely grated
300mls semi-skimmed milk
2 eggs
120g frozen or fresh blueberries. (If using frozen, don't thaw before assembling the pudding)
3 tablespoons Demerara sugar for sprinkling on top (optional)

Method
Use a little of the melted butter to grease a 2 litre baking dish.
Make sandwiches using the bread and a generous amount of orange curd, and cut into small triangles. 
Arrange half of the small sandwiches over the bottom of the baking dish and sprinkle over the blueberries and orange zest.
Arrange the rest of the sandwiches evenly on top, with some of the points sticking up, if possible.
Drizzle over the remaining melted butter and leave for about 10 minutes to allow the butter to soak in and set.
Beat the eggs and milk together and pour over the bread, pressing down with the back of a spoon to submerge the bread initially.
Allow to stand at room temperature for about 40 minutes, then sprinkle over the sugar and bake at 180C for 30-40 minutes, until the pudding is gold and crispy on top and the custard is set.

Best served warm rather than straight out of the oven, so allow to stand for about 20 minutes.

I used frozen blueberries, which didn't all burst when cooked; this looked good as there wasn't a lot of fruit juice spoiling the colour of the custard. The orange curd gave a strong flavour which was freshened by the orange zest. Using fresh fruit instead of dried made the pudding seem lighter and more suitable for summer.