CARAMELIZED BREAD PUDDING WITH CHOCOLATE & CINNAMON

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the softened butter on one side of the brioche. Cut each slice in half on the diagonal and then again into quarters.
• Whisk together the eggs, egg yolks, and brown sugar in a large bowl. Add the cream, milk, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt, whisking to combine well.
• Sprinkle the chocolate over the bottom of a 9-by-9-inch (or equivalent) baking dish. Arrange the brioche, buttered side up, with slices overlapping just slightly, on the chocolate (there should be just a single layer of bread). Pour the custard over the bread, pressing down with your fingers to make sure the bread soaks it up. Place the bread pudding in a roasting pan, and pour warm water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the pudding dish. Bake about 1 hour and 15 minutes, until the custard is set and the bread puffs up slightly. The pudding will be springy to the touch.
• Let the bread pudding cool at least 10 minutes.
• If you have a kitchen blowtorch, sprinkle the sugar over the top, and torch to brown and caramelize. If you don't have a torch, You run the pudding under the broiler to caramelize, but be careful not to curdle the custard underneath. Serve the bread pudding from the baking dish at the table, using a big spoon.