Unique Authors with Unique Books - Sarah Barnard with Maple Coffee and Butterscotch, Walnut and Coffee Bread Pudding

Sarah started writing because of a dare and the first draft of the resulting book was written in 30 days.











From that "Dare" book: The Portal Between.
The creature’s head turn slowly to look at each of them in turn. Blue lips slowly curled to reveal sharply pointed teeth in a cruel smile above a short curled goatee beard. Broad nostrils flared and seemed to be savouring the smell of their fear. The deep midnight blue skin was lightly scaled around the eyes and mouth. The scales were heavier on the thickly muscled neck that sloped into broad shoulders. His arms and chest were corded with thick muscle that rippled beneath the scales every time he moved. Naked to the waist he was very obviously male. His legs tapered away from his narrow waist and were encased in tight leather trousers that clung to his powerful legs. Legs that ended in a hoof, a cloven hoof. Tight dark curls adorned the lower legs, pouring from beneath the tight leather trousers at mid calf. The same dark curls wove tightly about his head, and cascaded down his back in waves. His ears rose to a sharp point, each just below a small but sharply pointed horn.



Maple Coffee

Ingredients:
•1 cup hot coffee
•1/4 cup maple syrup
•1 cup half & half
•Whipped cream
Preparation:
Heat the milk and syrup together in a saucepan, but do not let it boil. Stir in the coffee. Serve topped with whipped cream.
Serves 2


Butterscotch, Walnut and Coffee Bread Pudding

Ingredients

¾ lb brioche or challah 4 oz walnuts
10 oz butterscotch chips 16 fl oz milk
2 tbspn instant espresso or coffee granules 3 large eggs
5 ½ oz sugar ¼ teaspoon salt
2 tbspn unsalted butter


Discard crust from bread and cut enough bread into ½-inch cubes to measure 6 cups. In a large baking pan, dry bread, uncovered, at room temperature for 12 hours. (Alternatively, dry bread in a 250°F oven for one hour).

Butter a 10-inch pie plate (1½ quarts). Chop walnuts and toast golden. Cool walnuts. In a bowl, toss together bread, half of walnuts, and butterscotch chips and transfer to pie plate. In a saucepan heat one cup of milk until it just begins to boil and remove pan from heat. Add espresso or coffee granules, stirring until dissolved, and stir in remaining cup of milk.

In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar and salt and whisk in espresso mixture until well combined. Pour custard slowly and evenly over bread mixture. Chill pudding, covered, for at least one hour and up to one day. Sprinkle remaining walnuts evenly over pudding. Cut butter into bits and dot pudding with it. Bake pudding in middle of oven until bubbling and golden - about 40 minutes. Serve pudding warm or at room temperature.