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My 2017 Wayfair Homemaker First Harvest signature recipe: Roasted Veggie Bread Pudding with Toasted Pumpkin Seeds is full of savory flavors and is oh so easy to make. It presents beautifully too! Funny story: Fall fruits and veggies arrive much later in the season in the South (think October). When I went looking for my winter squash and pomegranate seeds, there were none to be had on my little island. The girl at the local veggie stand told me I could drive 8-10 hours North, if I wanted them now! HA HA!

Recipe: Roasted Veggie Bread Pudding with Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

4-6 servings

This is a great take-along dish for fall or any time of the year. You can just substitute other vegetables for the winter squash. It is also a hearty dish for the vegetarians in your family over the holidays. I sometimes serve this for breakfast or brunch. Other times, I add ham or ground turkey for HIMself. It is versatile to the max.

There is some prep time involved in chopping the squash and okra. You need to cut the bread into cubes the day before you make it so they will be on the stale side.

Ingredients

Roasted Veggies 

5 small winter squash (about 1 lb. each; acorn, carnival, delicata, sweet dumpling, or sugar pumpkins), cut into 1-inch cubes (about 6 cups)
6 shallots
12 oz. Okra (about 3 cups)
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Squash Preparation and Roasting

Preheat oven to 400°. Line large rimmed baking sheet with foil. Cut round squash in half crosswise. Remove seeds and strings and discard. If using delicata, butternut, or other oblong squash, cut in half crosswise and scoop out seeds and strings. If using zucchini or summer squash, there is no need to remove seeds.

Cut tops and end point off okra and place in a large bowl. Peel and chop squash into 1″ pieces; place in bowl. Sprinkle olive oil and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Spread in a single layer of squash and okra on baking sheet; add shallots on the side. Bake, stirring once, until squash is tender-about 30 minutes.

Recipe: Roasted Veggie Bread Pudding

Ingredients

1 day-old baguette with crust, torn into 1-inch pieces (about 7 cups)
6 large eggs
1-1/2 cups half and half or milk
6 tablespoons red wine
1-1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
8 ounces extra-sharp cheddar cheese, coarsely grated
¼ cup pumpkin seeds
½ cup pomegranate seeds or dried cranberries (soaked in water for 5 minutes, drained)

Roasted Veggie Bread Pudding Preparation

Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Generously butter 13x9x2-inch baking dish. Whisk eggs in large bowl. Add half and half, wine, mustard, coarse salt and pepper; whisk to blend. Add baguette pieces; fold gently into egg mixture. Let soak 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Transfer half of bread from egg mixture to prepared baking dish, arranging to cover most of dish. Spoon half of squash/okra mixture over bread. Repeat with remaining bread, squash, and okra. Add shallots and sprinkle with cheese and pumpkin seeds. Pour remaining egg mixture over bread pudding.

Cover bread pudding with foil. Bake 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake uncovered until custard is set and bread feels springy to touch-about 20 minutes longer.

Sprinkle toasted pumpkin seeds over cheese. Preheat broiler, then broil pudding until cheese browns slightly-about 2 minutes. Sprinkle the pomegranate seeds or dried cranberries over the top. Cool 5 minutes and serve.

You might want to hop over to Wayfair.com and check out some of their bake wear. I have a ton of cooking supplies and tools. The rimmed baking sheet and yellow casserole dish I used for this project are by KitchenAid.