Custard Shahi Toast Pudding

60 Minutes

Serves 6 People

Author: Rajni Ram

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A quick dessert for those times when sweet cravings are high but the motivation to make a dessert is very low. It is at one of those times that I created this dessert. The inspiration of this dessert is from the classic Shahi Tudka. Therefore I would also call the current dessert “lazy man’s Shahi Tukda .

When you don’t want to go through the whole process of making a Rabdi from scratch(oh yes, there are many instant Rabdi methods, and I have myself put up a recipe in my Malpua post), the custard takes it place. And to make it a little festive I have created layers of bread, custard, and dry fruits and nuts. It is a quick fix dessert and simple. It tastes like Bread and butter pudding. It is called a Shahi toast as I have fried(roasted) the bread in Ghee.

The first time I created this dessert my family was taken by surprise by its simplicity, and they liked the taste too. That definitely was a reason for me to share the recipe with everyone.

Leftover Bread can be used up in this Dessert, however ensure the bread is not very salty. Milk bread or sweet bread works best for this recipe.

While you are here check out dessert recipes on the blog like- Apple crumble, Bishop nut bread, Whole wheat blueberry muffins, Moong dal Halwa, Pistachio cake, Eggless Pineapple cake, Bajra and Almond flour cookies, and more…

Ingredients

Bread ( 1/2 a loaf sliced) cut them into triangles or rectangles (Tip- use sweet or milk bread). Cut the sides of the bread,but don’t discard.
Custard powder 3 tbsp
Milk 1/2 litre ( + 1 cup more to adjust consistency).
Sugar 1/2 cup tbsp or as sweet as you like it.
Nuts (of your choice) a handful
Raisins (black work best) a handful
Ghee 1/2 cup to fry bread(alternately toast the bread in ghee to a crisp toast)

Put the milk to boil in a vessel or sauce pan(in which you plan to make the custard). Take the custard powder in a bowl. Once the milk has boiled, put off the flame. From that take 1 cup milk and gradually pour into the custard powder, stirring all the while and for a smooth lump free past.
Now pour this custard paste into the boiled milk slowly, stirring all the while, and then switch on the flame. Add the sugar, and keep stirring until the custard thickens a little. The consistency should be a pouring one and not very thick. keep this aside(do not leave it to cool completely.
Now in a pan take the ghee and fry the triangles or rectangles of bread (I used about 8 slices). Fry them until crisp and they are nicely brown(not burnt). Alternately(if you don’t want the ghee binge), toast bread in ghee until crisp and keep aside. Toast the sides of the bread that you had cut and kept aside. Now it time to layer up.
To assemble- Take a deep squarish or rectangular dish(I used my loaf pan). Take about 2 to 3 ladles of custard and pour it at the base of the dish. Now evenly distribute a layer of fried bread, as shown in the picture. Top with with a layer of custard again. Sprinkle nuts and raisins.
Top up with bread slices again, followed by custard and nuts. The in between spaces in the dish can be filled with the toasted sides of the bread (check picture). The final layer should be that of custard and nuts as you can see in my picture. Now put this in the fridge to chill for atleast an hour.

Put the milk to boil in a vessel or sauce pan(in which you plan to make the custard). Take the custard powder in a bowl. Once the milk has boiled, put off the flame. From that take 1 cup milk and gradually pour into the custard powder, stirring all the while and for a smooth lump free paste. Now pour this custard paste into the boiled milk slowly, stirring all the while, and then switch on the flame. Add the sugar, and keep stirring until the custard thickens a little. The consistency should be a pouring one and not very thick. keep this aside(do not leave it to cool completely). Now in a pan take the ghee and fry the triangles or rectangles of bread (I used about 8 slices). Fry them until crisp and they are nicely brown(not burnt). Alternately(if you don’t want the ghee binge), toast bread in ghee until crisp and keep aside. Toast the sides of the bread that you had cut and kept aside. Now it time to layer up.

Assembly: Take a deep squarish or rectangular dish(I used my loaf pan). Take about 2 to 3 ladles of custard and pour it at the base of the dish. Now evenly distribute a layer of fried bread, as shown in the picture. Top with with a layer of custard again. Sprinkle nuts and raisins. Top up with bread slices again, followed by custard and nuts. The in between spaces in the dish can be filled with the toasted sides of the bread (check picture). The final layer should be that of custard and nuts as you can see in my picture. Now put this in the fridge to chill for atleast an hour. This way the bread absorbs the custard, but doesn’t turn soggy. To serve, slice with a knife, and serve chilled. Can also be enjoyed warm.

Notes:

1. You can use any flavour of custard.

2. The consistency of the custard is important, as too thin a custard will make the bread very soggy.

3. Sandwich bread leaves a salty taste behind. So it is better to use milk or sweet bread.

4. This is a good way to use leftover bread too.