Instructions: 1. Cut bread into 1-inch-thick slices. Toast bread slices. In 2-quart saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Remove from heat. Brush one side of each bread slice with butter. Cut buttered bread into 1-inch cubes and place in greased 1 1/2-quart casserole or baking dish.

2. In same saucepan, with wire whisk, combine undiluted milk, half-and-half, sugar, and pumpkin until smooth. Heat over low heat until bubbles appear around side of pan. Remove from heat.

3. In medium-size bowl, lightly whisk eggs with ginger, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt until well mixed; beat in about a cup of pumpkin mixture. Pour egg mixture into remaining pumpkin mixture and mix well. Pour pumpkin-egg mixture over bread and let stand until bread absorbs most of the liquid about 15 minutes.

4. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Fold dates into bread pudding until well mixed. Place casserole in 13- by 9-inch baking pan. Pour 1 inch of boiling water into pan.

5. Bake bread pudding 1 1/4 hours or until firm around edge of casserole but soft set in center. Cool pudding on wire rack at least 30 minutes before serving. Serve pudding warm or cool to room temperature.

Store pudding in the refrigerator.

Note: To bake this recipe in a pumpkin, cut top off a 5- to 6-pound pumpkin and remove seeds and fibers. Cut decorative edge on top of pumpkin, if desired. Place pumpkin in 9-inch-square baking pan. Bake pumpkin 30 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare bread pudding mixture and pour into partially baked pumpkin. Bake 1 1/2 hours longer or until knife inserted near center comes out clean.

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