Light Chocolate Avocado Bread Pudding with Maple Rum Sauce Recipe

No, your eyes aren’t deceiving you. I did say chocolate AVOCADO bread pudding. You think I’ve lost my mind, right? Taken up paddle up the funny river? Suffering from a marble deficiency? I promise that I am still of sound mind (well, as much as I usually am, anyways).

So, what’s with the California avocado in the bread pudding? If you’ve ever had bread pudding, you know that it is a rich, tender and pretty heavy dessert. What typically makes it so heavy is a boatload of butter and full-fat milk (or even cream). Oh yeah, and a not-so-small dose of sugar.

So, I got to thinking. How do I lighten up bread pudding without losing the glorious texture and flavor?

*Lightbulb!*

Avocados contain healthy fats, while also providing beneficial carotenoids and boasting a cholesterol-free status. And yet, they have that lovely creamy texture.

Out with the butter, in with the avocado. I blended half of a California avocado with fat-free evaporated milk (the kind in the can), some skim milk, unsweetened cocoa powder and a couple of eggs. Instead of sugar, I used maple syrup to mirror the maple flavor in the sauce and added a splash of dark rum (that’s always a good thing!) The bread soaked up the mixture, giving it a tender, decadent consistency when baked.

And what is bread pudding without a boozy, sweet sauce drizzled over top? That’s a rhetorical question, of course.

Maple syrup just screams “Autumn!” and I love that is a natural sweetener, which makes is a good alternative to granulated sugar.

Bourbon would be a natural combination with maple syrup, but I couldn’t resist the idea of pouring in some dark rum instead. I think that’s my mum’s Jamaican roots speaking. It speaks, I listen.

It’s time to dive in!

Find these tools and ingredients on Amazon:

• Other avocado recipes:
• Cookin’ Canuck’s Mini Guacamole & Tomato Olive Cups {Healthy Snack}
• Cookin’ Canuck’s Quinoa, Blueberry & Avocado Salad
• Created By Diane’s Avocado Cheesecake with Pistachio Crust
• Dine & Dish’ Lavash with Hot Spinach Avocado Dip
• A Southern Fairytale’s Guacamole Stuffed Bacon Wrapped Jalapeños
• I Wash, You Dry’s Spicy Guacamole Bacon Burger
• Average Betty’s Grilled Chicken Banh Mi with Avocado Cucumber Relish
• Light Chocolate Avocado Bread Pudding with Maple Rum Sauce Recipe
• Calories 231.4/ Total Fat 5.2g / Saturated Fat 1.8g / Cholesterol 47.8mg / Sodium 181.3mg / Total Carbohydrates 36.9g / Fiber 3.3g / Sugars 23.8g / Protein 6.9g / WW (Old Points) 4 / WW (Points+) 6
• Ingredients
• The bread pudding:
• ¾ cup evaporated fat-free milk
• 2/3 cup skim milk
• ½ California avocado
• 2 eggs
• ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ¼ cup maple syrup
• 2 tbsp dark rum
• 5 cups cubed crusty whole wheat bread
• The sauce:
• ½ cup pure maple syrup
• 3 tbsp dark rum
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter
• 4 tbsp half-and-half, divided
• Pinch of salt

Instructions

The bread pudding:

In a blender, combine the evaporated milk, skim milk and avocado. Puree until smooth.

Add the eggs, cocoa powder, maple syrup and dark rum. Puree until combined.

Place the bread cubes in a large bowl and pour the avocado mixture over the bread. Stir to completely coat the bread.

Lightly coat an 8- by 8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray. Transfer the bread mixture to the baking pan, cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 4 hours.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the baking pan in a 9- by 13-inch baking dish. Pour hot water into the large baking dish until it reaches about 1-inch up the side of the smaller baking pan.

Bake until a sharp knife inserted in the center of the bread pudding comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes.

Cut into 9 pieces. Serve each piece with 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons of the sauce.

The sauce:

In a small saucepan, combine the maple syrup, rum and butter. Bring to a boil of medium-high heat, whisking frequently.

Add 3 tablespoons of half-and-half, reduce to a simmer and cook, whisking frequently, until the sauce starts to thicken, 7 to 8 minutes.

Remove from the heat and whisk in the remaining tablespoon of half-and-half and the salt.

Notes

From the kitchen of Cookin' Canuck | cookincanuck.com

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Disclosure: This post is sponsored by the California Avocado Commission. All opinions are my own. This post contains links to my Amazon affiliate page. Any revenue made from sales through these links helps to support this blog. Thank you!

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