Hot Cross Bun Bread Pudding

My first memories of a pressure cooker are from the 70's. I remember Mom using a stovetop pressure cooker often, usually after work to cook potatoes for mashed. I don't think Mom would have ever thought to use her pressure cooker for bread pudding! You've come a long way, baby! It was very exciting to find that Instant Pot was going to be a sponsor of 37 Cooks! I hadn't used a pressure cooker in so long, to have a cooker that could do so many things in my kitchen is truly exciting! I wanted to try a dessert recipe and had some leftover hot cross buns from Easter, a perfect fit, and I didn't have to worry about buying raisins...they were already in the buns! 

I used my Mom's bread pudding recipe, adapting it slightly for the pressure cooker. Taking into account there would be less moisture loss through pressure cooking than baking, I decreased the amount of milk in the original recipe. I also increased the number of eggs I used, because I love more custard in a bread pudding. It was so easy to make in the Instant Pot. In fact, everything I've made so far in the Instant Pot has turned out pretty amazing! 

Hot Cross Bun Bread Pudding

by Mary P.

2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 eggs, beaten

Mix together in a large bowl.

Add:
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup sugar

Mix until well blended.

In a separate bowl mix:
2 cups hot cross buns, cubed - I used 6
1/4 cup melted butter.

Put the bread cubes into the milk/egg mixture, pushing the bread into the milk/eggs until completely submerged. 

Prepare a baking dish small enough to fit into the Instant Pot stainless steel inner pot. Butter the inside of the baking dish.

Put the steamer rack into the inner pot and pour 2 cups of water in. 

Make a sling of aluminum foil long enough to serve as a lifter for the baking dish.  You can do this by folding a long piece of foil lengthwise into thirds. 

Set timer for 20 minutes using high pressure. Then let sit 10 minutes on natural release. Gently turn the pressure valve to let off any leftover pressure and gently turn the lid. This makes a moister bread pudding that can be put under the broiler for a few minutes to dry out and brown the top if you'd like.  Because it is a moister bread pudding, I don't serve it with a sauce. Enjoy!