It's probably more like this old Hershey's recipe & your Mom just used cold coffee in place of the water. Here is a link that might be useful: Cake

I always add 1 1/3 cup milk, 1 stick of softened butter, 2 eggs and 1 tsp vanilla... tastes very good and dense texture.

This is the best I've ever had. LEMON BREAD PUDDING (serves 12) Lemon Curd: 3 large eggs + 1 yolk 1 cup sugar finely grated zest of 2 large lemons 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice 1 stick unsalted butter in 1" pieces In the top of a double boiler beat the eggs, yolk & sugar to mix. Stir in the zest & juice. Add the butter. Place over hot water on moderate heat. Cool uncovered, stirring & scraping the pan frequently with a rubber spatula for 15-20 minutes until themixture is as thick as mayonnaise. It will register at 180° on a sugar thermometer (I've never checked the temp.) Remove the top of the double boiler & set aside to cool completely. Will keep refrigerated several weeks.~~ Bread Pudding: 8-10 oz loaf French bread 10 eggs 1 1/4 cups sugar 1 qt milk (I've always used half-and-half) 1/4 tsp salt 1 1/2 tsp vanilla Lemon curd Butter a shallow, oblong 3 qt baking dish (13x8 or 9x2") & set aside. Preheat oven to 350°. Slice the bread 1/2" thick. Place slices on cookie sheet & bake 10-15 minutes until dry but not brown. Turn slices over when half done. Set aside. In a large bowl beat the eggs & 1 cup of the sugar, reserving the other 1/4 cup. Beat in the milk, salt & vanilla. Set aside. In the bottom of the baking dish place a layer of the bread slices touching each other. If necessary, break a few slices to fill in spaces. Spread 1/2 of the cooled lemon curd over bread. Make a 2nd layer of bread slices, these slices at right angles to the first slices. Again, break a few slices to fill in if necessary. Spread remaining curd over the top. Ladle egg & milk mixture slowly all over the top. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour. Put rack in center of preheated oven. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup sugar over top of pudding. Place baking dish in alarge shallow pan, place in oven & pour hot water into larger pan to about 1/2 the depth of the baking dish. Bake for about 45 minutes until top is puffed & just barely colored. Tap the side of the baking dish & when the middle moves only slightly, it's done. Serve hot or at room temperature.~~ Good served with a raspberry sauce. (Puree a bag of thawed, frozen raspberries. Strain out seeds & sweeten to taste.)

I've been thinking about those pictures of blocks of caramel. Wonder how many people would attempt making a 5-pound block of caramel at home? Anyway, a couple more tips for those who suddenly can't find their 5-pound block of caramel: The warm brown sugar sauce recipe in my March 26 post is a little on the rich, brown-sugary "praline" side, and may be a little salty for some uses if you use salted butter. For a sauce which resembles the typical caramel more, use half white sugar and half brown sugar, maybe adding a little vanilla. If I want a chewier sauce to serve hot so it will firm up on ice cream, I make it in a saucepan, cutting down to a quarter or half the butter in the original recipe, maybe increasing the cream a little (though this isn't necessary), and cooking to the soft-ball to firm-ball stage. If you're not allergic to corn syrup like I am, you can add a tablespoon or two to retard crystallization.