Savory Sausage, Greens and Slow Roasted Tomato Bread Pudding

Directions

1. For Slow Roasted Tomatoes
2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. Using the tip of a sharp knife, gently scrape and scoop tomato halves to remove most of the seeds.
4. Arrange tomato halves on paper, topping each with minced garlic. Sprinkle tomato halves with salt and sugar. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake for 45-55 minutes, until wrinkled and mostly dry. Start checking at 45 minutes to make sure they do not burn. Make tomatoes in advance and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator overnight; be sure to allow tomatoes to come up to room temperature before using.

1. In the morning:
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a large 13x9x2 ovenproof casserole dish. Set aside
3. In a small bowl, combine cheeses, breaking up large chunks with a fork. Set aside.
4. Remove casings and sauté sausage in a large skillet over medium heat, using a wooden spoon to crumble sausage. Cook until browned on all sides. Remove sausage with a spoon (not slotted) and drain on a plate lined with a paper towel.
5. Add onion and garlic to hot pan with sausage drippings. Cook, stirring, until onion begins to get translucent, about two minutes, being careful not to burn the garlic. Add kale and cook, stirring until wilted and bright green. Remove pan from heat.
6. Stir in slow roasted tomatoes and cooked sausage.
7. Layer about 1/2 of the bread cubes in bottom of baking dish. Follow with 1/2 of the sausage-tomato-kale mixture, and then dot with ½ of the cheese mixture. Repeat layers once more to use all of sausage-tomato-kale, cheese, and bread.
8. Whisk eggs with half-and-half and milk. Stir in basil ribbons. Season with a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper; since the sausage and cheese add a lot of salt you do not need a lot. Pour evenly over bread-sausage-tomato-kale-cheese mixture.
9. Using the back of a spoon, gently press down on bread cubes to soak up liquid. There will not be enough liquid to submerge the bread, this is okay. This will ensure that the top is crispy and the bottom soft.
10. Bake bread pudding in the middle oven for about 50-55 minutes. Bread top should be golden and the pudding fragrant. Allow to cool for a bit and then serve immediately. Enjoy!