HOW ABOUT STICKING TO SWEET?:

Bread pudding slips into something savory: When the dish tries on a new flavor wardrobe for fall, rich and earthy things begin to happen. (Amy Scattergood, 10/25/07, Los Angeles Times)

Built from bread, accomplished easily -- a union of earthy ingredients, a single pan, the heat of the oven -- a bread pudding is a disarmingly simple dish. Yet this unassuming nature hides a wealth of soulful flavors, of satisfying textures, of delicious possibilities. Dip your fork past the burnished crust, into the glorious bready interior, and taste the complex flavors such simplicity can occasion.

And if you need further proof of this pudding, try taking it savory instead of sweet. Because although it's fantastic as a dessert, the rustic dish really comes into its own when laced with fresh herbs and excellent cheese, or shot through with shallots and bitter greens, even sausage or bacon.

A savory bread pudding may begin with kitchen conservation, but it can end up transforming your whole meal along with those surplus baguettes, leftover ends of sourdough boule and pain rustique.