Comfort Food Recipe Redo

My friend Amanda asked her readers to come up with a healthy version of their favorite comfort food.  This has been on my list of things to do so I was excited to join in....and hopefully find someone else's comfort food recipe too.

I was trying to think of my favorite comfort food....and I kept coming up with Pizza and M&M's.  So I thought a little harder and I decided my ultimate comfort food has to be Bread Pudding!  I love it....so creamy and bready and rich.  And you can put chocolate in it.

Here is a healthy bread pudding recipe that I'm going to try as soon as it's not 90 freakin degrees in Denver.

Bread Pudding

6 slices whole wheat bread, cut into 1/2" cubes
1 cup chopped apple or pear
1 tablespoon trans-free margarine
1 tablespoon flour
1 cup 1% milk
1/4 cup three-fruit spread
1/4 cup unsweetened orange juice
1 large egg, beaten
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon rum extract or 1 tablespoon dark rum
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
Directions

1.Preheat the oven to 350°F. Coat a 6-cup baking dish with cooking spray. Place the bread and apple or pear in the dish. Set aside.

2.In a large saucepan over low heat, melt the margarine. Stir in the flour. Add the milk, stirring constantly, and cook for about 5 minutes, or until the mixture thickens slightly. In a small bowl, stir together the three-fruit spread, orange juice, egg, egg white, sugar, rum extract or rum, and allspice. Add to the milk mixture and stir until well blended. Pour over the reserved bread cubes and apple or pear. Stir just until the bread is coated.

3.Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the pudding is golden and set