Looking for that perfect dessert recipe for your loved one? Make them this berry whole-wheat bread pudding for Valentine’s Day – sweet berries, bread and fresh crumble…yum!
Enjoy berries anytime by choosing frozen varieties of your favorite berry. Frozen produce has just as many cancer-fighting phytochemicals as fresh produce – just remember to pick varieties with no added sugar.
Berry Whole-Wheat Bread Pudding Makes 6 servings Recipe courtesy of the American Institute for Cancer Research
• 1 cup fresh or frozen cherries (tart or sweet), pitted • 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries • ¼ cup sugar • 1 tsp. Cinnamon • 5 oz. fresh whole-wheat bread, cubed (about 3 cups) • 2 eggs • ¾ cup low-fat milk • ½ tsp. Vanilla extract • ¼ tsp. Salt • Cooking spray
Topping: • ¼ cup sliced almonds • 1 tsp. Powdered sugar for garnish
Instructions:
Combine cherries, blueberries, sugar and cinnamon in mixing bowl. Stir well to coat berries; add bread cubes.
In another bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, vanilla and salt. Pour egg mixture over berry/bread mixture and stir to coat bread thoroughly. Let mixture stand for 15 to 30 minutes to enable ingredients to combine and the bread to soak up the egg mixture.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Spray a 9-inch baking dish.
Pour pudding mixture into baking dish. Bake 20 minutes. Remove from oven and evenly distribute almonds over pudding. Return to oven and continue baking until pudding starts to set, about 25 to 30 minutes.
Remove from oven and let rest for 10 minutes. Garnish with powdered sugar. Serve warm.
Optional fruit sauce topping • 1 lb. bag frozen unsweetened mixed berries in juice • 1/2 tsp. cornstarch
Thaw berries in colander set over bowl to reserve juice; set berries aside. Mix drained juice with cornstarch. Cook berries over medium-low heat for about 3 minutes. Add juice mixture to berries and heat until thickened. Serve over or alongside pudding.
Per serving (without sauce): 183 calories, 5 g total fat (1g saturated fat), 27 g carbohydrate, 8 g protein, 3.5 g dietary fiber, 248 mg sodium.
Did you know? According to the American Institute for Cancer Research, cherries and blueberries contain powerful anthocyanins, phytochemicals that give these berries their rich colors. Both are rich in fiber, but cherries are full of vitamin C and beta-carotene while blueberries pack plenty of manganese and vitamin K.
