Cube bread into 1 inch pieces.

Melt 6 tbsp. butter, cut the remaining 2 tbsp. into small pieces.

Brush a 13 x 9 baking dish with 1 tbsp. melted butter.

Add chocolate chips to cubed brioche and toss to combine.

Whisk together the remaining butter, half and half, milk, sugar, eggs, vanilla and salt.

Add bread and chocolate chips to baking dish.

Pour custard mixture evenly over the bread and gently press down any pieces of dry bread so they are soaked in the cream mixture.

Let it soak for 30 minutes - optional, but recommended.

Preheat oven to 325°F convection (350°F without), then dot the top with the remaining pieces of butter and sprinkle raw sugar evenly over the top.

Bake for 30 - 40 minutes. The bread pudding should be barely set, with the tiniest wobble in the middle.

Let it stand for about 20 minutes before cutting.

Set a fine mesh strainer over a medium bowl. Place the medium bowl into a slightly larger bowl filled halfway with ice water. (We'll need this later in step 6)

In a small saucepan, heat the half and half with the vanilla bean over medium heat. Cook just until it barely comes to a simmer, about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and set aside. Remove vanilla bean and discard.

In a medium bowl, whisk the sugar and egg yolks together.

VERY slowly, add the hot milk to the egg yolks and sugar in a thin stream, while quickly whisking constantly. This is called "tempering" the eggs so they don't scramble.

Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the sauce has thickened slightly, about 5 minutes. The sauce should be thick enough to stay separated when you run a finger through it on the back of a spoon.

Strain the crème anglaise through the fine mesh strainer into the chilled bowl. This stops the cooking immediately.

Pour the crème anglaise over the bread pudding. Refrigerate any leftover sauce in an airtight container for up to a week.