Bread Pudding

I could write a book about the bread pudding recipe I got from my mother in law, Carolyn, a few years ago. I have never liked bread pudding, so when she offered me some that she had made when we were at her house visiting, I turned it down. Kirby, however, had some and talked me into tasting it. Have you ever wondered what food in Heaven tastes like??? This is as close as you can get on earth. We got her recipe and later that year when Jen and Jake came to visit us for Christmas, we made some. They both loved it, of course, and a few weeks later I got an email from Jen asking for the recipe so she could surprise Jake with a pan. It wasn't long after that she made some for her church, and she and the bread pudding became an instant success. We had already had the same reaction at our church, with so many requests for the recipe that I lost track of how many times I printed it out.

Last year, at our family reunion, one of my many cousins made cookbooks for everyone with lots of family favorite recipes and I gave her the bread pudding recipe.

Now, for the point of this whole story. Today I got a call from another cousin in Alabama who lives in an assisted living home. She has not been to the family reunion for several years because of her poor health, but she got a copy of the cookbook from her sister. One of the cooks at the home has been trying out some of the recipes and she made the bread pudding. My cousin told me that everyone at the home went crazy for it and when the cook said they needed to save some for later, they all insisted that they wanted a second helping NOW. She thought it was so funny she had to call and let me know that the recipe was a big success there, too.

So, a big thank you to my mother-in-law for a recipe that has become a legend in several states. And just in case you haven't had the pleasure of tasting it, here's the recipe.

6 Eggs
2 Sticks Butter
3 Cups Sugar
1 Can Evaporated Milk (12 oz.)
4 oz. Hot Tap Water
1 tsp. Vanilla
8 Slices of Bread
Cinnamon

Break up bread slices in a 9x12 cake pan and set aside. Melt butter and add eggs, sugar, milk, hot water, and vanilla and mix well. Pour mixture over the bread. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
Bake at 350 deg. for about 45 minutes.