Pina Colada Bread Pudding

I always save the ends of bread in a freezer bag for bread pudding. The difference this time is that all the bread I have saved lately is from fresh, homemade bread... yum! So in honor of the "special bread ends" I decided to make a special pudding. This recipe is adapted from a few I found on-line. I just tweaked it a bit to fit what I had on hand. It's cooling right now and smells wonderful!



PINA COLADA BREAD PUDDING

12 thick slices day-old bread
1/4 c. softened butter
6 eggs
1 box banana pudding mix
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 (15 oz.) can crushed pineapple in juice
1 c. grated coconut
1 cup coconut milk
2 1/2 cups milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 c. sliced almonds

Spread butter on bread slices. Place in a 9 x 13 in. dish, overlapping slices. Beat eggs with brown sugar in bowl. Add pineapple, coconut, coconut milk and milk. Blend well. Add vanilla extract and pudding mix. Blend well again. Pour over and in between bread slices. Sprinkle with almonds. Allow to soak 15 minutes. Bake 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Allow to cool before serving. This would be wonderful served with whipped cream or ice cream on top!