Ham, Fontina and Spinach Bread Pudding

Here is another recipe I am stealing from Jody's Yahoo! 360! Blog. She says, "This is a great winter recipe".

Ingredients

• 1 large baguette
• 1/2 stick butter, melted
• 2 onions, chopped
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 lb "cooked" ham, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 4 large eggs
• 4 C whole milk
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
• 6 C spinach leaves, coarsley chopped
• 3/4 lb fontina cheese, grated*
• black pepper

Directions

1. Preheat broiler
   
   
2. Diagonally cut baguette crosswise into 3/4-inch thick slices and brush both sides with butter. Toast on a baking sheet under broiler until golden. Shut off broiler and preheat oven to 350.
   
   
3. Whisk eggs in a large bowl and whisk in milk, salt, nutmeg, and pepper. Add toasted bread and toss gently. When bread is saturated, transfer it into a shallow 3-quart casserole, slightly overlapping slices. Add any remaining egg mixture.
   
   
4. While bread is soaking, cook onions in oil stirring occasionally until golden. Add ham and cook, stirring occasionally, until ham is lightly browned.
   
   
5. Tuck spinach and ham between slices, reserving a little ham for the top. Sprinkle cheese on, lifting slices with a spatula to allow some to fall between them. Sprinkle reserved ham on top and bake in the middle of the oven until puffed and the edges of the bread are golden. (I usually put this on a cookie sheet just in case it 'boils' over, so I don't have a burnt mess on the bottom of the oven.) Cook until custard is set in middle, about 45 minutes to an hour.

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