Bread Pudding Recipe: An easy old fashioned recipe is the BEST, and this recipe resembles the old-fashioned dessert recipe that we all love! It’s basic, and uses everyday ingredients and an optional brown-buttered vanilla sauce, or this vanilla sauce for bread pudding, to drizzle on top!
If you're looking for more desserts that work well for sharing, you'll find my favorite potluck desserts here.
Looking for quick and easy dessert recipes to add to your Pinterest boards? Then you’ll also LOVE this peach cobbler made with Bisquick, the BEST Banana Bread, and this easy pound cake recipe!
Jump to:
- What is Bread Pudding?
- Where did bread pudding come from?
- Ingredients for Bread Pudding
- What Kind of Bread is Best for Bread Pudding?
- How to Make Stale Bread
- How to Make Bread Pudding from Scratch
- How Long to Bake Bread Pudding
- FAQs and Expert Tips:
- Old-Fashioned Bread Pudding
- What to Serve with Bread Pudding?
- Amazing Bread Pudding Vanilla Sauce
- How to Make Browned Butter Sauce:
- How to Make Vanilla Sauce for Bread Pudding
- Related Recipes:
- Recipe
- Comments
I’m so glad that you’re here for this bread pudding. It may just change your decadent dessert life.
But if this is your first time here, you’re going to find tons of quick and easy recipes around here!
What is Bread Pudding?
Well it’s not the “pudding” you’re probably thinking of. Rather it’s a recipe that uses old, stale bread, combined with a creamy custard that consists of things like sugar, butter, milk, eggs, cinnamon, vanilla, and then bake it all. The outside edges may have a slight crisp, while the middle is a soft, custard-like texture.
Where did bread pudding come from?
New Orleans is famous for its bread pudding! However, bread pudding originated in England (UK) and was actually created as “poor man’s pudding” since it used very little ingredients. Since then, other ingredients were added to enhance the flavor.
I found out about it because my grandma used to make this old-fashioned dessert and I fell in love with it from the first moment I had it!
When I wanted to make this for the first time, I found a few good recipes for bread pudding in my old cookbooks, but they all had something that didn’t tickle my fancy. (Such as raisins – although you can add these if you like.)
So… I gathered all of the recipes up and came up with my own plan and I have to admit, using simple ingredients helped make this the BEST bread pudding!
Ingredients for Bread Pudding
This bread pudding is made with easy-to-find ingredients. Here are a few notes on some of the key ingredients. See the recipe card below for the measurements.
- Bread: Stale bread is best so it really soaks up the custard mixture, instead of it settling in the bottom and cooking the eggs separately.
- Butter: I’ve used salted and unsalted for this recipe and it turns out great each time.
- Milk: Feel free to try half & half or heavy cream if that’s what you have!
- Sugar: I use white granulated sugar for this but brown sugar for the optional sauce.
- Vanilla extract: If you can use pure vanilla, that’s the best. But I’ve used imitation vanilla in a pinch.
What Kind of Bread is Best for Bread Pudding?
French bread is a great bread for this recipe although I’ve used leftover sandwich bread, hot dog buns, hamburger buns, and more, and it always turns out great! (Or if you have stale donuts, you may want to make this donut bread pudding recipe!) Check out all the different types of bread readers have used over the years, in the comments!
How to Make Stale Bread
If you’re craving bread pudding, but don’t have the leftover bread or the stale bread to use for it, no worries!
Grab some fresh bread and either pop it in the toaster for a bit, or cut in to bread cubes (about 1-inch pieces) and bake it in the oven on 350° for about 5-10 minutes. (Don’t burn it or turn it brown. You’re just removing as much moisture from it as you can.)
I love this recipe, and I really do think it’s the best because it only includes items I usually have on hand, resembles the old-fashioned recipe that we’ve all known to love, and I had it all put together and in the oven in a matter of minutes.
How to Make Bread Pudding from Scratch
- Begin by preheating your oven to 350 degrees.
- Then you’ll start by buttering your 8×8 baking dish (or 9×13 casserole dish if doubling the recipe) and breaking up the bread into about 1-inch cubes.
- Toss the bread into the buttered dish.
- Melt your remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, and drizzle melted butter over bread pieces and set aside.
- Next, in a large mixing bowl, mix together the eggs, milk, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla.
- Next, simply pour the egg mixture over the bread pieces and make sure each piece has been covered or submerged to let that bread soak up that amazing custard mixture!
Oh my… doesn’t that photo of the egg mixture just make you drool!? It does me, every stinking time I look at it.
How Long to Bake Bread Pudding
- Toss that baby in the oven and let it bake the bread mixture uncovered for 40-45 minutes at 350º.
FAQs and Expert Tips:
Just like almost any dessert, or bread that you’re baking, insert a clean knife into the center and see if it comes out clean!
Well, it’s stale bread. Not super hard, and crispy… but bread that just wouldn’t be your favorite to use to make your favorite sandwich.
The reason you want day-old or stale bread is because you’ll want the bread to soak up the batter/custard of the bread pudding mixture.
Yep! It’s actually a great idea to make some of this ahead of time in case you need a last-minute dessert idea or to take a care package to a friend in need!
Just bake it as normal, and once cooled, place in the freezer for up to 2 months. When ready to thaw it, place it in the refrigerator to thaw it out.
You can enjoy bread pudding cold or warm, but if you prefer it warm after freezing/thawing, gently warm it to reheat.
Absolutely! I love make-ahead meals about as much as anyone, especially when entertaining! So if you want to make this ahead of time, feel free to!
You can either mix it all together and refrigerate it overnight before baking, or bake it, let it cool, and then refrigerate.
For best results, if you have left-over bread pudding, cool it until becomes room temperature and store in an airtight container (or cover the dish with plastic wrap) for up to 5 days, in the refrigerator.
Old-Fashioned Bread Pudding
That golden-brown bread pudding will remind you of grandma’s old-fashioned recipe as soon as you pull it out of the oven.
Serve it warm alone, with ice cream, or top it with the super-easy bread pudding sauce that I tell you about below…
What to Serve with Bread Pudding?
If you’re looking for a little something extra to serve with your new, easy bread pudding recipe, you might consider:
- raisins – as shown above
- chocolate sauce
- caramel ice cream topping
- ice cream
- whipped cream
- candied nuts
- dried fruit
- powdered sugar
- or this crazy-easy and delicious bread pudding sauce I whipped up for you…
Amazing Bread Pudding Vanilla Sauce
For years I shared this recipe without a sauce or a drizzle. But there have been tons of you who have made this recipe and left so many amazing reviews and comments below saying you’ve made a bourbon bread pudding, caramel sauce, or vanilla sauce, and I must say… you’ve inspired me.
So when I remade this recipe to take new photos for the blog, I decided to whip up a quick buttery vanilla sauce to see how it would taste, and have also provided a creamy vanilla sauce recipe that you can top it with.
The bread pudding is great as a stand-alone, but I’m a fan of this addition now, in a BIG way!
How to Make Browned Butter Sauce:
You’ll need the following, everyday ingredients to make this drizzle, that is more nutty, and a little less sweet than the custardy vanilla sauce option below:
- butter (I used salted but unsalted butter works just fine!)
- brown sugar
- milk or heavy cream (or even water)
- vanilla
It’s super easy. Grab a small saucepan, and melt (on high) 3 Tablespoons of salted butter.
Once melted, turned it down to medium heat and wait a bit to let the butter brown. (Browned butter is my JAM!)
Then, reduce heat to a simmer, and add in brown sugar, milk or cream, and then whisk for 1-2 minutes.
Remove from heat and whisk in vanilla. Pour on top of the cooked bread pudding.
How to Make Vanilla Sauce for Bread Pudding
Get the creamy vanilla sauce recipe if you prefer a sauce that is more “custard” like, rich, and also called “crème anglaise,” instead of the browned butter sauce that I’ve made above.
Bourbon Bread Pudding
If you love the taste of bourbon in your bread pudding, you can easily add bourbon to the vanilla sauce recipe above by adding in a tablespoon of bourbon (less or more, depending on your taste) when you add in the sugar and vanilla.
Related Recipes:
We have a major sweet tooth and are HUGE fans of bread pudding recipes so make sure you check out our chocolate bread pudding recipe, donut bread pudding, sweet potato casserole bread pudding, and banana bread pudding to see which one is your favorite! Or, you may even love trying this croissant bread pudding!
So tell me… did you make this bread pudding? Did you like it? Let me know below in the comments with the others, and give this a rating to let others know how much you love it!
Recipe
The BEST Bread Pudding Recipe
Video
Equipment
- 1 Mixing bowl
- 1 Saucepan Only if making sauce
- 1 Whisk Only if making sauce
Ingredients
- 6 slices stale bread (Or about 4-5 cups of broken bread pieces or cubes. Some ideas to use are: french bread, buns, rolls, donuts, challah, toast or another type of bread.)
- 3 tablespoons of butter 1 Tablespoon + 2 Tablespoons
- 4 beaten eggs
- 2 cups milk
- ¾ cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- raisins optional
Optional Creamy Vanilla Sauce
- vanilla sauce get my vanilla sauce recipe
Optional Brown Sugar Butter Drizzle
- 3 tablespoons butter salted (but unsalted is ok too!)
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1-2 tablespoons milk or heavy cream – optional *see notes
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and use 1 Tablespoon of butter to coat the inside of your 8 inch square baking dish.
- Break your bread (I made larger pieces, rather than crumbling it up) in to the buttered baking dish.
- Melt your remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, and drizzle over bread pieces.
- In a bowl, mix remaining ingredients (don't forget to beat your eggs first) until mixed well.4 beaten eggs, 2 cups milk, ¾ cup white sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- Pour this mixture over the bread, making sure to evenly coat each piece.
- Bake for 45 minutes, or until the top of the bread pudding springs back after lightly touching it with a fork.
Optional Buttery Brown Sugar Sauce
- Grab a small saucepan, and melt (on high) 3 Tablespoons of salted butter.Once melted, turned it down to medium heat and wait a bit to let the butter brown.
- Turn down to a simmer. Then, add in a tablespoon of brown sugar and the 1 to 2 tablespoons of milk/cream.Whisk to combine and simmer/whisk for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in vanilla.Serve over entire bread pudding in dish before serving or over individual servings.
Notes
- Which sauce to make? This bread pudding is great even without an optional sauce. However, if you want a sauce, I recommend picking one of the two. The browned butter sauce is more of an “accent” drizzle, and less rich/sweet than the vanilla sauce. I’ve recently added heavy cream as optional ingredient to help smooth the sauce out. If you prefer the older method, simply leave the cream out. The vanilla sauce is rich, more creamy, and more of a major topper for the bread pudding. Both are optional and not necessary for a delicious bread pudding.
- If your bread is really stale, soaking before baking is ideal, so it allows time for the bread to soak up the mixture. If the bread is older but not crusty, you can bake it right away.
- How do you know when bread pudding is done? Just like almost any dessert, or bread that you're baking, insert a clean knife into the center and see if it comes out clean!
- Can you freeze bread pudding? Yes! Bake it as normal, and once cooled, place in the freezer for up to 2 months. When ready to thaw it, place it in the refrigerator to thaw it out.
- Can I prepare bread pudding the night before? Yes! You can either mix it all together and refrigerate it overnight before baking, or bake it, let it cool, and then refrigerate.
- How to store leftovers For best results, store it in an airtight container for up to 5 days, in the refrigerator.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
Barbara says
I love it! I live alone and I double the recipe then cut it into serving size pieces, wrap it well (I love Press and Seal) and freeze it. It would probably keep several months in the freezer but it never lasts that long!
Jessica says
That is so wonderful Barbara! I’m so glad that you like this bread pudding and thank you for the tips on how to freeze it!
Asia says
I’m making it right now
Jessica says
I hope you love it!!
Patsy says
It’s in the oven now! Bread pudding is comfort food! I baked French Bread two days ago and had a loaf left! As you know fresh bread and no preservatives don’t last long! Perfect idea for Bread pudding! I made it by your recipe except I threw in a hand full of Blueberrys! I love the step that adds brown sugar and butter at the end! No need for sauce! It’s puffing up and I know it’ll be delicious! I used to make healthy desserts for my kids, but now it’s hubby and I! Love Bread pudding! Thank you for the tips! I can’t wait! It smells so good!
Jessica says
Thank you so much for the kind words! I hope you love this bread pudding as much as we do!
Carrie says
Amazing, just amazing. I made the vanilla sauce, served it warm and added a scoop of vanilla ice cream in the side.
Jessica says
This makes me so happy! Thank you for sharing that you liked this bread pudding Carrie!
Theresa Nystrom says
Excellent! I’d been craving bread pudding and my favorite restaurant has been out for days. I decided to make my own. I used half and half and it was delicious. Made the vanilla sauce which was also very good. It would have been good without it too.
Michelle Leach-selmon says
I made this using Peach Cobbler bread that I had and couldn’t figure out what to do with. It was absolutely delicious, my boyfriend said I had to make another one lol. *For an adult version I used some Piña Colada wine cocktail with the 2nd batch I made using the last of the peach cobbler bread. This is an amazing recipe and so easy to make.
Jessica says
Oh my goodness this all sounds amazing!! Thank you so much for sharing and I’m thrilled that you liked this bread pudding too!
holly says
If you make the the vanilla sauce, do you put on beofre or after baking ?
Jessica says
Hi Holly. I drizzle it on after it bakes, while it’s still warm. I hope that helps!
Jackie says
Super yummy! I made a double batch and the sauce. I shared with my neighbors and it was a big hit! They want the recipe now.
I just wish I had some vanilla ice cream when I made it! Brings back memories of my earlier years!
Will be saving this recipe.
Jessica says
This is so great to hear Jackie! I’m so glad that you and your neighbors love this bread pudding too! Thank you for sharing!
Sandi says
I served this to friends for dessert after lunch awhile ago and have had a request for a repeat. Thanks for sharing
Jessica says
Oh that’s so good Sandi! I’m so glad they loved this bread pudding too. Thank you for sharing!
Camille Katherine Myers says
I am 68 yrs old, and this recipe is really easy to make,
and oh sooooooooooooo, Good.
Thank you!!!!!!
Jessica says
Hi Camille! I’m so glad you liked this bread pudding recipe! Thank you so much for taking the time to share with us!
leia says
very good!!!!!!
Jessica says
This makes me so happy! Thank you for sharing and for the 5-star review on the bread pudding recipe!!
Bill K says
This is it! Always gets rave reviews. Don’t skip the vanilla sauce. I’ve used 2% milk, whole milk, half and half and almond milk. As you might imagine half and half is my favorite. For high altitudes you have to add significant baking time (10-20 minutes extra).
Strongly recommend!!!
Jessica says
Oh Bill, this makes me so happy!! Thank you so much for sharing your review on this and for all the suggestions. Super helpful!
White Sandra Motyl says
Does almond milk change the taste very much?
Debbie says
Has anyone tried this recipe with adding a can of fruit filling? I am thinking of making this and adding a can of sliced pears. Wondering if this would work out.
Jessica says
Hi Debbie! I haven’t tried it (I hope someone else chimes in too!) but it sounds delicious and will put it on my list to try! Thank you for the suggestion!
Sue Anderson says
Delicious! I use up homemade bread & add raisins to the pudding.
Thanks, second time using the recipe. Give it a 10
Jessica says
Awww, thank you so much Sue! That means a lot!! 🙂 If you’d like to leave a star-rating (you can click on the stars in the recipe card) I’d LOVE that!! It helps others know it’s a good recipe too. Thank you again!
Jeanne says
I made this recipe this afternoon. It is so easy and tastes better than restaurant bread pudding. This will definitely be in my favorites recipe book. Thanks for sharing
Jessica says
That makes me so happy to hear. Thank you so much for sharing how much you loved this bread pudding recipe too!
Cathy Pelletier says
I used to work at a restaurant called the Buttowood Grille. They had the best bread pudding. I have tried to duplicate this recipe over the years but never any success until this recipie. So delicious. Thanks!!!
Jessica says
Hi Cathy! Oh wow! This makes me so happy. I’m so glad that you found it then and are able to bring back the memories of their bread pudding! Thank you for sharing. 🙂
Myra Caparroso says
I made this bread pudding recipe it was easy to do .simple and delicious . Everyone loves it . Thank you for sharing this recipe
Craig says
Great recipe. I double the vanilla sauce and add salted carmel. Has anyone ever double the batch and cook in 16×9?
Jessica says
Hi Craig! Thank you so much. I have and it worked great!! I hope that helps. 🙂
Yvonne says
Bread pudding turned out divine and taste amazing especially with a scoop of Roselani’s vanilla bean ice cream.
Debbie says
This is the perfect Bread pudding and my whole family loved it. That brown butter really added a richness and really made this different . Thanks for a great recipe .
Rachel says
I’ve been searching for a great pudding recipe. This is easy to make and heavenly!
Ramona says
I love bread pudding it’s one of my favorite things to make! This recipe looks amazing and it looks perfect and delicious! I can’t wait to make it, thank you for sharing this recipe!
Daonguyen says
I made this bread pudding, i added raisins and sone slivered almond. My husband loved it. I shared it with friend and her husband did not like nut in It.