Wonderful Wednesday Recipe: Maple Syrup and Apple Bread Pudding topped with Sugared Apples

Maple syrup is for many Canadians the most iconic food in our collective culinary repertoire. Glistening like polished amber, real maple syrup, tapped during the last weeks of winter and boiled into one of nature’s finest sweet offerings, is a taste that instantly makes us glow with national pride.

Generally it is between February and April when maple syrup is harvested in Ontario, and though I won’t be tapping any trees myself this year (as fun as I’ve always imagined doing so would be), when maple syrup season rolls around, I – as if almost by instinct – am drawn to dishes (both sweet and savoury) – that include this home-grown ingredient.

This recipe, which I first discovered many years ago (I’m inclined to say in an old copy of Canadian Living magazine, but am not entirely certain of that) is sometimes known by its French name “Pouding Au Pain À l‘Érable”, which I rather enjoy using (doesn’t any dish sound lovelier when its name is spoken in French?) – and most definitely relish eating, no matter what it’s called!


{One of the lovely things about most brands of genuine maple syrup is that it still comes packaged in charming glass bottles, just like the one in this 1950s advertisement for Log Cabin maple syrup, a brand that it still on the market today. Image via Jackie121467’s Flickr stream .}


A simple, uncomplicated recipe (which is vegetarian and can be made vegan if you opt to use vegan margarine in place of butter or non-vegan margarine) with soothing flavours, this dish can easily be jazzed up further with the inclusion of a hit of apple brandy, some chopped nuts, cinnamon, or your favourite dried fruit. I’ve served it piping hot, cold from the fridge, and perhaps my favourite, at room temperature (call me odd, but I really like my bread and rice puddings at room temperature). It’s scrumptious, comforting and very morish, whether eaten toasty or chilly.

The apples you put to work here can be any baking variety that you like. I lean towards Cortland, Macintosh, Red Delicious, Liberty or Spartan, but the choice is entirely up to you. If you wanted to take this recipe is a slightly more tart direction, you could use Granny Smith or Greensleeves and introduce a whisper of lemon or orange peel into the mixture before popping it in the oven.

Serve this tasty dish for breakfast, brunch, dessert or even with afternoon tea, paired, should you fancy, with whipped cream, clotted cream swirled with a little maple syrup, or a dollop of cinnamon or vanilla ice cream.



Maple Syrup and Apple Bread Pudding topped with Sugared Apples

Ingredients

-1 cup fresh bread crumbs (I like to use day old French or sourdough bread with the crust removed)

-4 cup peeled, cored and chopped apples

-2 apples, peeled or un-peeled (as you like), sliced (note: you will need six apples in total for this recipe)

-1/2 cup real maple syrup (this is not the time for imitation maple syrup!)

-1/2 tsp salt

-1 cup of water

-1/4 cup dry bread crumbs

-Approx. 1/2 cup white sugar

-2 tbsp light brown or muscovado sugar

-3 tbsp (unsalted) butter or margarine


Directions

Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C/gas mark 4).

In a large mixing bowl combine the fresh breadcrumbs, chopped apples and salt. Place these ingredients in a buttered baking dish (I generally use an 8x8 or 10x10 inch dish for this recipe, but a similarly sized oval or rectangular dish could be used, too), and set aside for the time being.

In small sauce pan, heat the maple syrup and water over high heat just until it comes to a boil (you don’t want it to caramelize). Remove from heat and pour over the apple and bread crumb mixture. Sprinkle dried bread crumbs evenly over top, and then set aside for a moment more.

Combine the white and brown sugars in a shallow dish or plate and then dredge the apple slices (from the two apples that you sliced, not the chopped ones which went into the fresh bread crumb mixture) through the mixture, coating each side (add a little more sugar to the dish, if needed). Place the sugared apple slices evenly atop the bread pudding, and then dot the top of the pudding with small pieces of butter or margarine.

Place baking dish in the oven, uncovered, for 20-25 minutes, or until the apples feel tender when pierced with a skewer (or fork) and the top of the pudding has taken on a pleasingly, pale golden hue.

Allow to stand for a few minutes before serving this soft, fragrant, wonderfully Canadian pudding. Saying "dessert is ready, eh!" when you bring it to the table is entirely optional :D

Serves 4 to 6

Bon appétit!

A quick good morning wish & scores of thanks!

Happiest of Thursday greetings, my darling readers! I hope that your morning is off to a marvelous start!


{Ensure you begin your day off right with a big bowl of vintage goodness via this adorable 1940s Rice Krispies ad featuring Snap, Crackle and Pop :D Image from Saltycotton’s Flickr stream.}

♥ ♥ ♥

I just wanted to post a quick message to extend my utmost deepest of heartfelt thanks to everyone for your comments on my opera outfit post; you literally brought me to tears with your incredibly sweet, encoring, beautiful words. Thank you so much, everyone, for your phenomenally kind comments; to say they mean the world to me would be an understatement.

As I mentioned briefly on Monday, this week has been a bit of a chaotic one because there was some work being done on our apartment and we (and poor Stella, who we boarded at her vet’s, as tenants weren’t allowed to have animals on the premises while the work was being done due to some harsh chemicals being used) had to vacate the premise for a while (before which we had to pack up quite a lot of stuff so that it wouldn’t be in the way of the work that needed to be done). As such I haven’t been on the computer much in the past few days (I’m actually just logging in now for the first time since Tuesday), and am a bit behind in catching up with not only each of your wonderful comments, but also in visiting your gorgeous blogs. As things stand now my schedule is a little freer as we head into the later part of this week, so I’ll be doing my absolute best to catch up over the next few days.

I also have so much to write about just bursting to jump out of my head and onto this blog! In the very near future (aka, sometime in the next few days) I’m going to be announcing a brand new giveaway contest which will be open to all of my readers wherever you reside in the this world. As well, I want to start a series of posts devoted to vintage Christmas gifts for different types of vintage enthusiasts (think along the lines of those magazine articles that feature pages upon pages of gifts for different types of people on your holiday shopping list like “the avid golfer” or the “eco-chic gal”, neither of those will be categories in my holiday roundup, but I will feature gifts for lots of different kinds of vintage loving folks).
Several other post ideas are simmering on the burners of my mind, so I know that I’ll definitely be a busy blogger as we head into the tail-end of 2009.

Giant thanks again, everybody, for your fantastically sweet comments – not only on Tuesday, but for each post you share your thoughts with me on.

Wishing you all a delightfully terrific Thursday!

How to be vintage chic even on days when you call in sick

The truth of the matter is that there rarely anything even remotely glamorous about being ill or injured, but the title for this post sprung into my mind and struck me as sounding like something one might have spotted on the cover of a 1940s or 50s ladies magazine (minus the word "vintage" and assuming the gal held a job outside of the home to call in sick to).

Before I go further though, I sincerely want to thank everyone for your incredibly caring comments regarding my husband’s injured foot and my own health. Darling hubby is doing a little better (the swelling is going down a bit, which tends to be a good sign), and was absolutely touched when I shared your sweet words with him. It means so much to me to have such wonderful online friends, thank you deeply everyone.

I know firsthand that at times when you’re under the weather comfort is key. You want to feel as though you’re swathed in pieces that, even if they can’t actually heal you quicker, won’t make you feel any worse. Soft, gentle fabrics, beautiful fresh cut blooms to bring life and colour to a bedside table, snugly blankets to nestle into on the sofa or a lounge chair in the backyard if the weather permits, and a stack of your favourite vintage films are all great ways to help take your mind off of the situation at hand.

With that thought in mind, I’ve handpicked a selection of lovely, often functional vintage (and handcrafted) items (please note all prices are in US dollars) that I think would each be a wonderful way to inject a dose of uplifting energy, while providing their own special sort of comfort, to any sickroom, be it temporary or long-term, home or hospital based.


♥ ♥ ♥



{Ethereally light as a fairy’s wing, this delicate, pale carnation pink bed jacket would be the perfect thing to slip over chilly shoulders during the warmer months when you don't want the full on weight of a robe. $59.00 from etsy seller Posies for Lulu.}



{For times when you want a little more coverage and warmth than a bed jacket affords, a plush, quilted vintage robe, such as this lovely aqua-mint hued number, is the perfect solution. $22.00 from etsy seller Vintage Eye Fashion.}



{Before electric heating pads and blankets became commonplace, hot water bottles were one of the few ways to help keep the chills at bay. These simple rubber devices are still readily available and are handy to have on hand; after all, you never know when you might encounter a power outage while you’re feeling unwell. This hand knit cover with its pretty star motif, ensures that your hot water bottle looks lovely and feels more comfortable against your skin. $32.00 from etsy seller Strikk. }



{There’s both something a little Hollywood starlet and immensely practical about having a charming little bell on hand to ring when you’re ill and need to beckon someone to your side. Vintage brass bell with handle, $5.00 from etsy seller Spicy Vintage.}



{Help pass the time while you’re feeling icky by reading some old school pulp fiction such as this pocketbook novel entitled Doctor on Approval. $4.00 from etsy seller Vintage Vice’s Paper Emporium.}



{Whether it’s a cold, allergies, hay fever, the flu or another type of ailment, many illnesses bring with them the need for tissues, lots and lots and lots of tissues! A beautiful, floral print vintage tissue box cover is just the thing to make the boring, obligatory box of Kleenex a little more pleasant, no matter how many times you reach for it. $2.95 from etsy seller Girlythings73.}



{Very handy for meals, reading, writing letters, doing your nails, or in this modern era of ours, using the laptop, a tray such as this two part, tilted one is extremely useful to own for anytime you need (or want) to relax in bed yet still stay productive. $48.00 from etsy seller Extra Virgin Home.}



{While there are certainly many lovely modern and vintage bed trays on the market, you may want to spruce up or further adorn your tray with some wonderfully lovely linens such as this set which includes two napkins and an actual bed tray cover. $35.00 from etsy seller Teremok.}



{Enjoy your meals (I’m thinking homemade chicken noodle soup, soda crackers, Jell-o and ginger ale) off of these pastel hued compartmentalized trays in bed, in front of the TV or any place you fancy! $10.00 (for four trays) from etsy seller Willow Street Vintage.}



{Distract yourself from how you’re feeling by playing a few rounds of a really neat looking board game from 1961 called Ben Casey M.D., which was based on a popular TV medical drama of the time. $14.00 from etsy seller Ragtime Design.}



{Who doesn’t need an extra hug or two when they’re in pain? I certainly do, and when darling hubby (who’s a marvelous hugger!) isn’t home, I know I can always rely on a precious teddy bear to give me a snuggle :) This adorable vintage patchwork bear would be an awesome cuddle partner for anyone and would also look lovely on display around your house. $7.50 from etsy seller Saltsman Soap.}



{If someone near and dear to you is feeling sick or is in the hospital, send them a beautiful vintage get well card. Unused cards such as this illustrated one depicting a young lass picking flowers, are still available, often at very reasonable prices, through sources like etsy and eBay, garage sales, second hand shops and estate sales. $4.50 from etsy seller Vintage Vice’s Paper Emporium.}


I hope that these items transmit a sense of comfort and care. Being sick or injured is absolutely no fun, and we all need a little extra TLC when coping with any sort of ailment.

What kinds of things do you want/love/need to around you when you’re feeling ill? Topping my list are good books, mashed potatoes (my mom is the same way, I must get this from her), TV shows and movies that make me laugh, my treasured childhood teddy bear, plenty of squishy pillows, and my online friends and their awesome blogs to keep my thoughts focused on all things vintage.


*PS*


While searching for vintage bed jackets I chanced upon a free pattern for a 1956 Coats and Clark brand crochet version that was too pretty not to share with you all. And for anyone who might be looking for a modern day iteration of this once common nighttime wardrobe staple, the online shop Serene Comfort has a number of cozy looking bed jackets at reasonable prices.