You may not think that Bread Pudding is a Jamaican dessert, but you have to remember that Jamaica was a colonial country run by the British for a long time. As a result a lot of our food has English influences or origins, like bread pudding. For me, what makes my recipe Jamaican is the combination of spices we love and, of course, a tablespoon of Jamaican white rum for pizzazz! When I was young we’d have to buy stale bread to make bread pudding because, with a house full of kids, fresh bread never got a chance to go stale in our home. Today I like to use a crusty Italian loaf; but fresh or stale, you can use any white bread.

 I think you’ll really like my bread pudding recipe, especially if you’re a creative cook. That’s because it’s so easy to jazz it up with a cup of your favourite nuts or fruit like chopped apples, pears or pineapple … blueberries and raspberries are really nice too. Feel free to experiment; this recipe is very forgiving. The best thing about it is that it tastes as good the next day as it does warm out of the oven topped with ice cream, fruit or, our family favourite, warm English custard! – Mama Fay