Preheat the oven to 350°. With a pastry brush, spread the softened butter evenly over the bottom and sides of a 13-by-9-by-2-inch baking-serving dish. Set the dish aside.PUDDING:
2 T butter, softened 3 eggs A 12-ounce loaf day-old French- or 2 c sugar Italian-type white bread ½ c seedless raisins 1 quart milk 2 T vanilla extract ------------------------------
Break the bread into chunks, dropping them into a bowl as you proceed, and pour milk over them. When the bread is softened, crumble it into small bits and let it continue to soak until all the milk is absorbed.
In a small bowl, beat 3 eggs and 2 c sugar together with a wire whisk or a rotary or electric beater until the mixture is smooth and thick. Stir in the raisins and vanilla extract, then pour the egg mixture over the bread crumbs and stir until all the ingredients are well combined.
Pour the bread pudding into the buttered dish, spreading it evenly and smoothing the top with a rubber spatula. Place the dish in a large shallow roasting pan set on the middle shelf of the oven and pour boiling water into the pan to a depth of about 1 inch. Bake for 1 hour, or until a knife inserted in the center of the pudding comes out clean.
Meanwhile, prepare the sauce in the following fashion: Melt the butter bits in the top of a double-boiler set over hot, not boiling water. Stir 1 c sugar and 1 egg together in a small bowl and add the mixture to the butter. Stir for 2 or 3 minutes, until the sugar dissolves completely and the egg is cooked, but do not let the sauce come anywhere near a boil or the egg will curdle. Remove the pan from the heat and let the sauce cool to room temperature before stirring in the bourbon.SAUCE:
8 T butter (1 quarter-pound 1 egg stick), cut into ½-inch bits ½ c bourbon 1 c sugar -------------------------
Serve the bread pudding at once, directly from the baking dish, and present the whiskey sauce separately in a sauceboat or small bowl. serves 8 to 10.
2 c unsifted flour ½ c sugar
1 tsp double-acting baking powder 1 T butter, melted and cooled
½ tsp ground nutmeg, 1 T vanilla extract
preferably freshly grated Vegetable oil for deep frying
½ tsp salt Confectioners' sugar
3 eggs
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Combine the flour, baking powder, nutmeg and salt, sift them together into
a bowl, and set aside.In a deep mixing bowl, beat the eggs with a wire whisk until they are light and frothy. With a wooden spoon, beat in the sugar, the cooled melted butter and the vanilla extract and, when all the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated, beat in the flour mixture, about a ½ c at a time. Divide the dough into two equal portions.
To shape the dough into rounds, roll out one portion into a rough rectangle about 1/8 inch thick. With a cookie cutter or the rim of a glass, cut the dough into 3-inch rounds. Gather the scraps into a ball, roll them out as before and cut as many more rounds as you can. With a sharp knife, cut two parallel slashes about 2 inches long and ½ inch apart in the center of each round.
If you prefer to do so, you may shape the dough into triangles instead of rounds. To shape the dough into triangles, roll out one portion into a circle about 12 inches in diameter and 1/8 inch thick. With a pastry wheel or sharp knife, divide the circle into 16 equal pie-shaped wedges. Cut a 3-inch slash lengthwise down the center of each wedge.
Pour vegetable oil into a deep fryer, or large heavy saucepan, to a depth of 2 or 3 inches and heat the oil until it reaches a temperature of 360° on a deep-frying thermometer.
Fry the croquignoles, two or 3 at a time, turning them about with a slotted spoon for 4 minutes, or until they are golden brown and crisp. As they are deep-fried, transfer them to paper towels to drain.
Serve the croquignoles warm, or cooled to room temperature. Just before serving, sprinkle them lightly with confectioners' sugar. Recipe will make about 3 dozen round or triangular pastries.
