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1
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
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2
Brush bread slices with butter and toast in oven until golden.
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3
Set aside.
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4
Heat cream and milk in a small saucepan until almost boiling.
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5
Meanwhile, whisk together the sugar and eggs until thoroughly mixed.
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6
Add orange peel, vanilla extract and the cream-milk mixture and whisk together.
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7
Stir in the dried cranberries and salt.
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8
Arrange toasted bread in a 9-by-12-inch baking dish in two overlapping rows.
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9
Pour in cream mixture and cover with aluminum foil.
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10
Put a smaller pan on top and weigh it down so that the bread slices are submerged.
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11
Leave overnight or for at least one hour.
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12
When ready to bake the pudding, preheat oven to 325 degrees.
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13
Remove pan and weights from top of pudding and punch the foil with holes.
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14
Place baking dish in a larger pan of hot water (a bain-marie); the water should be two-thirds of the way up the sides.
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15
Bake for an hour and 45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the middle of the pudding comes out clean.
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16
Sprinkle pudding with confectioners' sugar.
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17
While the pudding is cooking, make the sauce.
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18
Beat the sugar with the egg yolks until everything is thoroughly mixed.
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19
Bring the cream and the milk to boil in a small saucepan with the vanilla extract.
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20
Whisk in one-half cup of hot cream mixture into the eggs, then pour the egg and cream mixture into the saucepan with the remaining milk and cream.
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21
Whisk over low heat until mixture thickens enough to coat the spoon.
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22
Be careful not to let it boil, or it will curdle.
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23
Remove from heat, add bourbon and cool.
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24
Chill until ready to use.
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25
Cut pudding into slices and serve warm on a pool of the chilled sauce.
