Savory Bread Pudding with Tomatoes, Feta and Olives: Recipe Development for Lipman Produce

Last month I received an email asking if I'd like to develop a recipe for Lipman Produce. Since the key ingredient was tomato, of course I said yes.

Then I started to think about creative and unique ideas for recipes I could make with tomatoes. Alas, several ideas I came up with were already taken by other bloggers involved in this project, so I had to continue brainstorming.

Finally, I created Savory Bread Pudding with Tomatoes, Feta and Olives. Not only is this recipes simple to make, it looks gorgeous, can be served for breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner, and is good for households of one or for those occasions when you have people over for a big meal.

Before I share my recipe, here's a little bit of information about Lipman:

"When it comes to fruits and vegetables, all of us at Lipman understand the importance of buying only the freshest, safest and most delicious-tasting produce for your family. After all, we’ve been family-owned and operated for more than 70 years.

While we’re known around the country for our intensely flavorful tomatoes, our fields also yield succulent melons and a variety of nutritious vegetables, including bell peppers, cucumbers, squash and eggplant.

Providing farm-fresh fruits and vegetables has been a family tradition since the 1930s – and we’re proud to make you part of it."

Savory Bread Pudding with Tomatoes, Feta and Olives

Serves 4

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 cups cherry tomatoes
2 garlic cloves, chopped
3 eggs
1/3 cup milk
freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1/4 cup chopped kalamata olives
1 cup crumbled feta
4 cups 1"-cubed focaccia (I used focaccia my friend Cecilia made. If you aren't lucky to have Cecilia as a friend, use store bought focaccia, challah or Italian bread)
Nonstick cooking spray

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 375F.
2. Heat a skillet on medium-high heat. Add oil and allow it to heat. Add tomatoes and saute for ten minutes. Add garlic and saute for two more minutes.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, black pepper and parsley. Add olives, feta, bread, and tomatoes. Mix everything together carefully: you don't want to smash the tomatoes.

4. Spray four ramekins with nonstick cooking spray. Divide the bread pudding mixture amongst four ramekins and bake for 25 minutes.

Digging into these individual bread puddings, you'll get bursts of flavor from tomatoes, feta and olives. The texture contrast of the focaccia cubes inside versus on top of the pudding adds a bit more interest to the dish.

Make sure to check my recipe and the recipe of other bloggers on Lipman's website.

Although I used Lipman's cherry tomatoes for this recipe, they grow many other kinds.

"At Lipman, you say tomato … and we say "what kind?"

The perfect variety encompasses many characteristics: abundant flavor, superior nutritional value and uniform size, color and shape. That's why, at Lipman, we're constantly striving to grow tomatoes so delicious, even the pickiest eaters can't say no. Our line of tomatoes ranges from small – like our Cherry Berries, Little Gems and the soon-to-be-released Tiamo – to large, like our Vintage Ripes, a proven customer favorite."

What are your favorite dishes to make with tomatoes? What are your favorite types of tomatoes?

Disclosure: Lipman Produce sent me four varieties of tomatoes to play with in my kitchen and gave me a stipend to develop a recipe for them.