Gilliland's Irish bread pudding with caramel-whiskey sauce

Brush butter over bread and toast lightly on 1 side. Cube and set aside.

Soak raisins in Irish whiskey. Combine milk and cream in saucepan. Scoop black seeds from vanilla bean into milk and cream and add pod. Heat, remove pod and allow mixture to cool.

Beat eggs with 1 cup sugar and add milk mixture. Stir in bread cubes and raisins, and allow to stand 15 minutes.

Pour bread mixture into buttered glass baking dish. Dot with additional butter. Mix together remaining 1 tablespoon sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over to taste. Bake at 350 degrees until set, about 1 hour. Serve with Caramel Irish Whiskey Sauce, fresh fruit or as is.

Melt sugar in water over low heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Boil without stirring until caramelized, 15 to 20 minutes. In separate pan, warm whipping cream. Add butter and whipping cream to sugar mixture and cook until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Cool, then add whiskey and more cream for desired consistency.