Chocolate Chip Cookie Muffins with Jason, Nashville, TN

A non-bread pudding shout out to my cousin, Jason, for suggesting we try dough in muffin pan.  Voila, these chocolate chip cookie muffins!  He's an interior designer and modeling coach from Chicago with a wonderfully creative mind.  We had a great time.  His wife helped and our kids waited for it all to be done.

Sunflower Cafe, Nashville, TN

Now I love some texture and unexpected combinations, which seem to
be specialty at this "meatless and three" semi-elegant version of Copper Kettle.  There's no affiliation, they just remind me of one another, but one vegetarian (SC) and the other decidedly not, though veggie friendly (CK).  Sunflower Cafe is tucked among the other tasty treasure troves across the street from One Hundred Oaks Plaza/Mall.

As usual, I went just because a friend told me about the BP.  I could not resist (as if I ever do), a restaurant that had the courage to mix chocolate, mango AND coconut.  I can't imagine there are so many bread pudding and coconut fans as to make this a permanent part of any menu, but I'm happy to be wrong on this one.  It was... pretty good.  I imagine that it was lacking the fat components that would make it a 4-fork.  I generally don't expect to feel virtuous when eating BP, and appreciated the flavors that made it feel a little sinful.

Price: I can't remember and it seems to be off the regular menu,but no dessert is over $6.75
Raisins: No
Sauce: Yes, vanilla
Ice cream: No
Visited: April 2013

http://www.sunflowercafenashville.com/

Holland House, Nashville

Holland House is known for its potables, but it should be known for it's bread pudding!  I can't believe I didn't find it on any of the lists.  I just happened to stop in and saw it on the menu.  Again, it reminded me why I'd rather have a forkful of bread pudding than a drink any day.  And why my tour of bread puddings this month has got to end!  I'm on a roll and don't want to gain a roll.

This was elegant in name, execution and taste.  Warm cocoa nib bread pudding featuring chocolate chunks, walnuts, Nutella brittle, chantilly cream and chocolate ganache.  It was a mouthful to read and a mouthful of pleasure to taste.  Please forgive the to-go box for not giving it the setting that it deserves.  Whoa - this was not some thrown together dessert with bits of whatever the cook had handy.  This BP is at a whole other level, and I again had to up the fork-quotient to give it its due.  My goodness, the description can't even do justice to the complexity of textures and tastes that abounded in this treat, but it's a start.  It made me wish I was a real food writer. Nothing in it was off-balance, it was a new combination of wonderfulness with each forkful.  Ahhhh.


Price: 8.00 (well worth it, unlike Chappy's)
Raisins: No
Sauce:  Chantilly creme, chocolate ganache
Ice cream: No
Visited: October 2012


Holland House Bar and Refuge

55 South, Franklin, TN

55 South in Franklin, TN, has it going on!  I stopped by after a meeting at the fantastic Williamson County Public Library with its energetic director.  I shall start with the toasted marshmallows.  Totally superfluous but delightful garnish.  This BP is chocolate and I don't have any idea what else was in it.  Apparently the restaurant changes flavors often, and you have to be "in the know" to know it's there prior to arriving.  I couldn't find it listed on any of the menus on the website.  It was perfectly firm in texture, and the taste was a lovely basic chocolate (I fear it had some barely detectable fancy ingredient and I'm doing a disservice).  I got it to go and ended up eating it cold, which should have been a no-no, but was a yes-yes!

Price: $7.95, but enough for sharing.
Raisins:  Nope
Sauce:  Nope
Ice cream:  Yes, premium vanilla
Visited: December 2011


55 South

Thanks to Beth of Eat.Drink.Smile.http://www.eat-drink-smile.com/, who enthusiastically recommended this BP at the Nashville Food Bloggers Holiday Shindig.

A shout out to Wine with Lisa, who swears this Louisiana BP with Buttermilk Bourbon Sauce is the best ever.  I'll give her the benefit of the doubt, even though it has raisins.

Sweet 16, Nashville, TN

Several Nashvillians told me if I like BP, Sweet 16 is the place to go.  They're closed for a few weeks in the summer and close at 2:00 pm during the week so I made a few misses before I struck gold.  The look and smell alone got me.  Just look at it!  Imagine it warm, with rich gooey chocolate layer not too dark but enough to linger and when it was heated, the chocolate ran onto the plate.  There was a floral taste, which the owner told me was from the nutmeg and Yazoo beer.  I couldn't taste the beer, it was there to bring dimension to the chocolate.  The light and dark bread was pretty with cube topping for a crust.  I had a nice chat with the owners. By the way, the owners got a crop of hatch chili peppers and have been using it in a number of recipes, sweet and savory.  The hatch chili soup gave my tastebuds pause and for some reason the presence of seeds was welcome because it gave texture to a not quite pureed veggie broth with potato and onion.

Price: 3.49

Raisins: no

Sauce: no

Ice cream: no

Visited: November 2011

Sweet 16 Bakery

Wild Hare, Nashville, TN

I knew that the Wild Hare would be one of my favorite places, just from reviews, the menu and website. I finally got there for lunch to celebrate a month of really good work, and saw Chocolate Caramel Bread Pudding was the daily special! It was meant to be! i'm having mixed feelings because it's not a regular item, but considering how my shorts feel today, that's a good thing. As you may be able to see from the photo, I got an order to go when I found out it was a limited feature.

Perfect. I know I've said it before about very different bread puddings, but this is perfection for today. I love the sliced and toasted approach. The slices were crisp on all edges and smoothly firm inside. It was cooked and mixed well. The BP was not too sweet, which allowed the chocolate to shine. The homemade whipped topping and two juicy ripe strawberries gave me choices about how to combine each bite. I didn't taste the caramel but I don't care. I will be back, but for now, I'm taking a nap.

Price: $6
Raisins: No
Sauce: Chocolate, caramel
Ice cream: No, whipped cream
Visited: July 27, 2011

Crest Cafe, San Diego

I got a Groupon for the Crest Cafe, again WAY far north of downtown. I cabbed up and was blessed with a bus for the trip back ($2.25). I was torn between breakfast and lunch because it all looked so soothing and satisfying, but I went with breakfast. On a recommendation, I had the creme brulee French toast and spicy chicken sausage. The FT was very good (orders of magnitude better than what I got that morning from the Embassy Suites breakfast buffet) but not extraordinary. For it to say creme brulee, I wanted to be wowed, instead of just filled.

But this blog is about BP, so I ordered their croissant BP. You know I wanted to really be wowed by this. I mean, that's one step below the elusive donut BP I've heard about. Well, I took it back to the hotel eventually and refrigerated it. I finally ate it at the airport the next day many hours later, and it was a soggy mess. First, I don't believe it was made with croissants because I didn't notice the layered flakiness. Admittedly, eating the BP 24 hours later after being treated ungently did not make for the best experience, but I question whether it would have been that impressive if I'd eaten it at the restaurant. Maybe. I'll give it a 2 because I don't know.

Bottom line is this diner is wonderful and quirky and maybe the BP is ok, but it's worth a $10 cab ride to try the rest of the food.

Price: around $8.00

Raisins: Yes, yellow mixed with chocolate chips. Ick

Sauce: Yes, unknown

Visited: January 2011

Crest Cafe

425 robinson ave
san diego, CA 92103
(619) 295-2510

Analog Bar, San Diego

Nope, this isn't BP. I'm breaking my own rule because sometimes, a good dessert deserves a few accolades. This chocolate brownie pot du creme, cutely called the Pot Brownie, was just what I needed on a night when I was so exhausted my eyes were bleary and crossing and my feet didn't want to walk any further in shoes (low-heeled, but still). The amount of whipped cream on top of the pot du creme was obscene, but it cut the richness of the chocolate on the bottom and the chewy brownie accessory just right. I also applaud this very hip joint for the chopped brussel sprouts flash fried and salted like popcorn.

Price:$5

Nuts: No (sadly)

Visited: January 2011

Analog Bar

801 5th Avenue
San Diego, CA 92101-6107

Other BPs I have loved

Since I don't have a good memory of these, I'll just combine this posting. I don't know what is rich and too rich, so I guess you have to taste it to know. I don't guarantee that these places still serve BP as I visited them prior to 2010. And yes, it looks inconsistent, but sometimes I can like it even with raisins.

Teller's Gallery, Columbia, MO - 4, bourbon sauce, excellent despite raisins
Big John's Chicago, IL - 4, excellent despite raisins
Ralph Brennan's Jazz, Anaheim, CA - 3, vanilla, cream, big raisins
Catal, Anaheim, CA - 3, chocolate, too rich
Exposure, Chicago, IL - 4, huge portion, rich
Reading Market, Philadelphia, PA - 4, peach BP sold by an Amish vendor
Busboys and Poets, Washington, DC - 3, raisins and white chocolate
Nacionale 27, Chicago, IL - 4, ice cream, everything they make is fantastic
Marjorie's, Seattle, WA - 4, like everything they do
Medici, Chicago, IL - 3, great texture but sneaky raisins
Boudros, San Antonio, TX - 4, bourbon sauce and raisins
Mello Yellow, Chicago, IL - 3, good but raisins

Skipjacks Seafood Emporium, Boston

Since it's been almost a year, I'm going to just enter the good ones in each city. Skipjacks had a lovely chocolate BP. The website makes you download the PDF for the menu, which gets on my nerves, so I'm not sure if they still sell it.

Price: 7
Raisins: No
Visited: January 2010

www.skipjacks.com/
199 Clarendon Street
Boston, MA 02116
(617) 536-3500

Flour Bakery, Boston

This place is awesome, so the BP had no choice. Despite being room temperature, the chocolate banana combination was memorable. The topping was generous. I want more! Thanks to whoever posted about the best BPs in Boston. I visited 5 of them.

Price: 3.99
Raisins: No
Sauce: Yes
Ice cream: No
Visited: January 2010

www.flourbakery.com/
12 Farnsworth Street
Boston, MA 02210
(617) 338-4333

John's Place, Roscoe Village, Chicago

John's Place rates a 4 for brunch and a solid 3 for dinner, but my goodness, the chocolate bread pudding hurt my feelings. I went for my birthday and thought it fate that I hadn't pegged John's for BP before we ended up there. We lost a reservation at Coobah, so here we were. Well, no matter that the double chocolate BP was dry and tasteless, with big ole cubes of bread on top - a no-no for me, I will still go back, but just make a different choice.

Price: 5
Raisins: No
Sauce: Don't remember but it wouldn't have mattered
Ice cream: No
Visited: November 2010

http://www.johnsplace.com/
773/244-6430
2132 W. Roscoe, Chicago, IL 60618