Thanksgiving Savory Bread Puddings

This luscious squash-studded bread pudding is the ideal accompaniment to roasted meats and birds, or cut it into large squares and serve as a main course with a green salad on the side.

In this recipe chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall layers baguette and lump crabmeat, then pours custard on top.

Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s first Thanksgiving, at a colleague’s house in New Hampshire, was a shock—a good one. “I’d never seen such a big bird before,” the Alsace-born chef behind New York City’s Jean Georges recalls. Back in his kitchen, Vongerichten took the American stuffing basics and reconfigured them. This dressing, which he prefers to cook outside the bird, takes an unexpected form.

Thanksgiving Make-Ahead Tip: The bread pudding can be prepared earlier in the day and reheated.

A good loaf of cranberry-nut bread from a bakery has so much flavor that there’s no need to trick it up with lots of ingredients. As the pudding bakes, the bread becomes almost custardlike, with a crispy brown top.

Star Ingredient: Quercus Umbriae Giudia Artichokes

If cooks were asked to name the vegetables they find most intimidating and time-consuming to prepare, artichokes would surely top the list. Marinated artichoke hearts from Umbria in central Italy solve the problem: No trimming, cooking or choke removal is required.

A rich, round, dry Pinot Blanc will underscore the earthy mushrooms and tangy cheese in this pudding.

This bread pudding is almost like a tart, with the croutons acting as a crunchy crust. Tender baby spinach in the filling turns incredibly silky when cooked.

For a more elegant presentation, bake this savory bread pudding in individual ramekins.