bostock.

Leftover brioche? Think bread pudding bostock.

Most versions of bostock I've come across instructs you to soak the sliced brioche in a syrup before slathering on the almond cream. Or in Tartine's cookbook, after the soaking and before the slathering, spreading on a layer of jam. And then maybe some sliced almonds or powdered sugar for decoration. In comparison, the recipe I followed, Dorie's recipe, is incredibly simple. The best part is you don't need to have almond paste to make the almond cream, which is, I must say, the most annoying part of any almond cream recipe because I can't seem to locate any. I may have to make my own stock of almond paste, but not many recipes need it so I'm not inclined to have a box of it sitting in my fridge, unused and abandoned.

Dorie's recipe just requires you to apply a layer of almond cream to the sliced brioche, top it with sliced almonds if you so desire, and bake it in the oven until golden-brown and puffy. It's so easy, and so good. I've not tried the other versions with the use of syrup but I don't think I need, or even want to. This bostock allows you to taste the butteriness of the brioche and the almond cream without masking it with the sweetness from a syrup. As long the brioche isn't too stale, it should become soft and almost as fresh-tasting as day one, so I don't see the need to resort to a syrup to recover its moisture or make up for the lack of flavour.

I wished I'd spread on more almond cream though, that was de-lish. 

Bostock 
recipe from Baking: From My Home to Yours

Brioche
Almond Cream:
3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature

2/3 cup sugar

3/4 cup ground blanched almonds

2 teaspoons all-purpose flour 

1 teaspoon cornstarch

1 large egg

2 teaspoons dark rum or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

To Make the Cream Using a Food Processor:  Put the butter and sugar in the food processor and process until the mixture is smooth and satiny.  Add the ground almonds and continue to process until well blended.  Add the flour and cornstarch and process to blend, then add the egg.  Process for about 15 seconds more, or until the almond cream is homogeneous.  Add the rum or vanilla and pulse just to blend.

To Assemble the Bostock: Cut a slice of brioche to 1/2  to  3/4- inch thick.  Spread the bread with about 3 tablespoons almond cream, leaving a little border bare, and scatter over some sliced almonds, blanched or not.  Put the bread on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat, and bake at 350°F until the almond cream is puffed and golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes.  Serve the bostock warm or at room temperature.

Linked to These Chicks Cooked, Sweet Treats Thursday, Sweet Tooth Friday, Sweets for a Saturday and Sweet Indulgences Sunday.