Name: Umm Ali
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Egyptian
Ingredients: 6-8 Croissants – roughly torn into bite size pieces; 2.5 cups Milk- full fat; 1/4 cup sugar; 8 oz cool whip; 1/2 cup slivered almonds- divided; 1/4 cup yellow raisins; 1/3 cup coarsely chopped pistachios- for topping

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Umm Ali is traditional Egyptian bread pudding, that makes a perfect dessert or breakfast treat. It’s warm, rich, and delicious with a soft-silky texture.

Umm Ali- Om Ali

Buttery croissants meet rich whipped cream, raisins and slivered almonds in this Croissant Bread Pudding!

Traditionally Um Ali, also known as Om Ali or Um Ali is made with an Egyptian flatbread called Roaa, phyllo or puff pastry sheets. I used croissants because they’re easily accessible everywhere and they taste amazing in this pudding.

If you love bread pudding as much as I do, then making them with croissants will blow you away! It brings in the best taste and texture and you won’t want to make this any other way again!

The croissants really add to the bread pudding by soaking in all of the delicious flavors. And when you add in that cool whip on top, well, it just takes this to a whole new level!

This Middle Eastern bread pudding recipe is a great way to use leftover or stale croissants.

Ingredients:

If you love buttery croissants and you love bread pudding, of course you’ll love this Egyptian Croissant Bread Pudding. And let me tell you, it is so so easy to throw together!

Here’s what you need to make this delicious Umm Ali bread pudding:

Croissants: preferably day-old but if you have freshly baked croissants, you can also use them in this recipe, you just have to bake them, so they dry out a bit.

Milk and sugar: mixed well and simmered to low boil.

Cool whip: or you can use 1 cup heavy cream whipped to soft peaks.

Raisins: I used yellow golden raisins.

Nuts: slivered almonds and crushed pistachios.

Let’s Start Baking!

How to Make Umm Ali Dessert:

STEP 1: Prepare the croissants: Cut your croissants into chunks and place in a 8×12 inch baking dish. Then bake them at 400°F (205°C) for a couple of minutes or until lightly browned and crispy.

Step 2: Make the Milk Mixture: Combine milk and sugar in a pot. Stir, and bring to a boil on medium heat. Remove from heat.

Step 3: Pour the hot milk over the croissants.

Umm Ali is traditional Egyptian bread pudding, that makes a perfect dessert or breakfast treat. It’s warm, rich, and delicious with a soft-silky texture.

Step 4: Sprinkle with slivered almonds and raisins.

Step 5: Top with whipped cream and spread it evenly all over the surface of the pudding.

Step 6: Bake: Return to oven and bake for 10 minutes. Then Broil about 5 minutes or until the top layer is golden brown and has caramelized.

Step 7: Serve: Remove from the oven and sprinkle with slivered almonds and crushed pistachios. Enjoy warm!

Tips and Variations For this Umm Ali Recipe:

Ways To Adapt This Recipe

You can swap the yellow raisins for any other dried fruit, such as cranberries or cherries, or leave them out altogether. You could also add different nuts, like pecans, hazelnuts, or walnuts. If you like, you can swap the croissant for sourdough, just like this sourdough bread pudding.

STORAGE AND REHEATING TIPS

Pro Tip: The bread pudding is best served warm, so reheat any leftovers in the oven or microwave.

Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

If you want to reheat the leftovers before digging in, you can warm individual servings for 30-60 seconds in the microwave.

You can warm larger portions in a low oven (around 300-325°F), by placing leftover bread pudding in an oven-safe baking dish, then cover it with foil. And heat just until the bread pudding is warmed through.

Some favorite ways to serve this Bread Pudding

Sprinkle some cinnamon and powdered sugar on top.
Drizzle some maple or agave syrup.
Drizzle some caramel syrup on top.
Top with sliced bananas.
Top with chocolate chips.
Top with a scoop of ice-cream and serve it as dessert!