Chef Jason Bangerter of Langdon Hall in Cambridge, ON has an unbridled passion for excellence fueled by his dedication to supporting and developing sources for sustainable, responsibly produced ingredients. As a focal point of his culinary vision, Chef Jason recognizes the importance of preserving a “sense of place” throughout his work and its impact on the future.
“This is a delicious and easy way to use up any day-old crusty bread or butter croissants with some simple pantry items combined with fresh, Ontario-farmed whole cream and milk chocolate! Change it up to suit your favourite chocolate combos by using milk, dark or white chocolate or a mix of all three. You can always add some extra fun to the dish by including dried fruit, nuts, some plump sun dried cranberries or raisins, chopped cashews or pecans. Just add a handful to the bowl when you mix the croissant and chocolate with the cream mixture before baking.
There is nothing quite like experiencing the magic of a warm creamy vanilla custard and toasted crispy butter croissant. This is a great recipe to get the whole family involved, support some local farmers and above all, have fun in the kitchen!”
This recipe is part of the Savour Ontario at Home series featuring top Ontario chefs and tastemakers. Sign up to receive the complete digital collection of recipes at: savourontarioathome.ca.
Butter Croissant & Milk Chocolate Pudding with Vanilla Whipped Cream
- prep time: 10 min
- cook time: 30 min
- serves: 4
INGREDIENTS
- 4 cups medium butter croissants, chopped or torn
- 1 ½ cups milk chocolate, roughly chopped
- 4 large eggs
- 3 ½ cups (whipping) 35% cream, divided
- 3 tbsp sugar, divided
- 1 vanilla bean, split (seeds only) or a few drops of vanilla extract
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- Pinch of kosher salt
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter for coating the pan
INSTRUCTIONS
- Place the croissants and chocolate into a medium bowl.
- In a second medium bowl, add the eggs, 2 ½ cups of the cream, 2 tablespoons of the sugar, cinnamon and salt. Whisk well to mix.
- Pour 1/3 of the cream mixture into the bowl with the croissant and chocolate. Gently stir the mixture to moisten the croissant and combine well with the chocolate. This is a good time to taste the mixture and adjust to your liking with more sugar and spice if you desire.
- Butter the baking pan (I use a 5-inch cake pan), dust with a pinch of sugar and spoon the prepared croissant mixture into the baking pan, spreading it evenly.
- Pour the remaining cream mixture into the baking pan, sprinkle with more chocolate and sugar. Place the prepared baking pan into a larger pan and pour in enough hot water until it reaches halfway up the pan holding the pudding creating a water bath.
- Carefully transfer to a preheated oven and bake at 350ºF (177ºC) for 25 minutes or until the custard is just set (soft and jiggly) and the top of the pudding is golden brown. Cooking time will depend on the size of your baking pan and how deep your pudding is.
- Once the custard is set, remove from the water bath and allow to sit and cool slightly at room temperature for 5 minutes before digging in.
- While the pudding cools, whip some cream! In a medium bowl, whisk the remaining cream, sugar and some vanilla.
- Serve it Up: Ice cream or vanilla whipped cream make a great accompaniment to this decadent creamy treat.
