Challah Bread Pudding

July. One year since Clay shipped to Basic. One year of the house being empty. One year of cooking for two, of the wrong-sized portions, of the chair at the table that's always there and always empty. Connie and I have adapted. Adaptation is what humans do — we adjust, we recalibrate, we find new normals. But the new normal still has a Clay-shaped hole in it, and the hole doesn't shrink with time. You just learn to walk around it.

Fourth of July was small. Travis and Jolene came. Amber was working — holiday shifts are mandatory for new nurses. I smoked ribs because I always smoke ribs on the Fourth, because tradition is the rope you hold when the current is strong, and this current has been strong for seventeen months. The ribs were good. Travis ate a full rack. Jolene brought her banana pudding, which has become the official Hensley Fourth of July dessert. We ate on the patio and watched fireworks and I thought about Clay watching — or not watching — fireworks from wherever he is, and whether the sounds in the sky remind him of other sounds, worse sounds, the sounds that soldiers hear and civilians don't.

Clay's last letter arrived Thursday. Short, even for Clay: "Everything is fine. Getting hot. Boring mostly. Rodriguez says the fried chicken recipe is still classified. Miss you guys. August home stretch." August home stretch. He comes home in October. Three months. The countdown runs the other way now — not counting down to departure but counting down to return. Every day is one day closer. Every Monday soup bean is one week closer. The math is finally working in our favor.

I made corn on the cob. Fresh, in season. Four minutes in boiling water with sugar. Butter, salt, eat. The simplest food and the best food and the food that tastes like July in Kentucky, which is the taste of heat and sweetness and the particular abundance of a state that doesn't know it's abundant because it's too busy growing things to notice.

Jolene’s banana pudding has shown up at every Hensley Fourth of July for as long as I can remember, and this year was no different — even with the empty chair, even with Amber working her shift, even with Clay somewhere overseas counting down to October. That’s the thing about a good pudding dessert: it doesn’t need the whole family present to do its job. It just needs to be there, sweet and familiar, reminding everyone at the table that the traditions are still running. This challah bread pudding carries that same spirit — a custardy, deeply comforting dessert that belongs at a summer table, the kind of dish that holds steady when everything else feels uncertain.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 50 min | Total Time: 1 hr 10 min | Servings: 10

Ingredients

1 loaf challah bread (about 1 lb), cut into 1-inch cubes, day-old preferred
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing pan
4 large eggs
2 1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup raisins or dried cranberries (optional)
Powdered sugar, for serving

Instructions

Prep the pan and bread. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 9x13-inch baking dish. Spread challah cubes in a single even layer in the dish. If the bread is fresh, spread it on a baking sheet and toast at 300°F for 10 minutes first to dry it out slightly.
Make the custard. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, heavy cream, granulated sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt until fully combined and smooth.
Combine and soak. Pour the melted butter over the challah cubes, tossing gently to coat. Pour the custard evenly over the bread. If using raisins or dried cranberries, scatter them over the top. Press the bread down gently with a spatula so every cube absorbs the custard. Let soak for at least 15 minutes at room temperature, pressing down once or twice during that time.
Bake. Bake uncovered for 45–50 minutes, until the top is deep golden brown and the center is set with just a slight jiggle. A knife inserted near the center should come out mostly clean.
Rest and serve. Let the pudding cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing. Dust with powdered sugar. Serve warm, at room temperature, or cold — it’s good every way.

Nutrition (per serving)

Challah Bread Pudding — Jolene’s Tradition, Carried Forward