Ingredients

• 1 loaf unsliced rich egg bread, such as challah (1 pound), cut into 1 inch thick slices
• 3 cups milk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 10 large eggs
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 4 tablespoons butter or margarine
• 6 medium firm bananas, cut into 1/4 inch thick slices
• 1 bottle (8 ounces) maple syrup

Instructions

1. Grease shallow 3 1/2 to 4 quart ceramic casserole or 13-inch by 9-inch glass baking dish. Arrange bread slices, overlapping slightly, in dish. In a medium bowl, beat milk, salt, eggs and 1/4 cup sugar until well mixed. Slowly pour egg mixture over bread slices; prick bread slices with fork and press slices down to absorb egg mixture. Spoon any egg mixture that bread had not absorbed over bread slices.
2. In a cup, mix cinnamon with remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar; sprinkle over top of bread pudding and dot with 2 tablespoons butter. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or overnight.
3. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Remove cover from bread pudding and bake 45 minutes, or until knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
4. For the sauce; melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in a nonstick 12-inch skillet over a medium high heat. Add banana slices and cook about 3 minutes, until lightly browned. Pour maple syrup over bananas; heat to boiling. Boil 2 to 3 minutes, until mixture thickens slightly. Serve warm sauce in bowl with bread pudding