Bread and apple pudding cake

Cut the stale bread in chunks and collect it into a big bowl.
Heat the milk in a saucepan with the vanilla pod. When it starts to gently simmer, remove the vanilla pod and pour over the stale bread. Let it sit for about 10 minutes.
Collect the raisins, figs and prunes in a bowl and soak with the marsala. Set aside for a few minutes.
Preheat oven to 180°C.
Mash the bread into the milk with a fork until you smooth. It must be very soft, but not too liquid. You can also use a blender.
Add eggs, sugar, the peeled, cored and cubes apples, the baking powder and melted butter into the mashed bread and whisk until smooth. Add also the dried fruit infused with marsala and stir.
Butter a 26 cm ring pan and sprinkle with half of the breadcrumbs and some sugar. Tilt the pan to coat it completely. Spoon the batter into the pan, smooth the surface and sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and two tablespoons of sugar. Add a few slivers of butter.
Bake the cake for about 50 minutes - 1 hour, or until set and golden brown on top. Check the doneness with a toothpick inserted in the cake, it must come out clean, with no batter attached to it. Mind, though, that the cake will be still moist.
Let it cool down for about 10 minutes on a wire rack, then tip it out onto a plate. Let it cool down completely before slicing.
It keeps for a few days on your countertop, just cover it with some kitchen paper