Growing up we were not allowed to leave the table until our plates were clean, and by clean I mean we had to wipe them clean with a thick slice of crusty bread. If by chance there was anything left over mum would resourcefully turn it into something else the next day. I think this mentality of not wasting a thing had something to do with both parents having lived through the food shortages that were endemic on the island of Malta during the Second World War.

The chocolate and fruit bread pudding or Pudina Tal Hobz as it is referred to in Maltese is yet another great example of not letting anything go to waste. And so the humble, stale loaf of bread is miraculously transformed into a delicious chocolate bread pudina.




Over the years I have also made this pudina with day old, stale croissants or Danish pastries. I have also tossed in dried cranberries and hazelnuts into the mix and other times I have added chopped up candied orange peel as it goes really well with the dark bitter chocolate. Typically you would not add chopped chocolate to the pudina, but I like that extra dimension of decadence.


Pudina Tal Hobz - Chocolate & Fruit bread Pudding
 
This is delicious warm straight out of the oven served with a good quality vanilla ice cream. I also love to eat this cold for breakfast as it is the perfect accompaniment to my early morning coffee.

Ingredients

1 loaf of stale fruit bread

3 cups of milk

3 tbsp cocoa powder

4 tbsp of brown sugar

1 tsp ground cinnamon

100 g dark bitter chocolate chopped

2 organic eggs

Grated rind of an orange

 
Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220C/428F/Gas 7

2. Grease a 20cm x 20cm square tin and set aside

3. Tear up the fruit loaf into small chunks and place in a bowl. Add the milk and allow bread to soak for 20 minutes.

4. Add the cocoa, sugar, cinnamon, eggs and orange zest and mix until well combined. Add the chopped chocolate and stir through.

5. Place the bread mixture in the tin and bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes until the top of the pudina is crisp. Serve immediately with good quality vanilla ice cream.