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 3-ingredient brown-buttered vanilla sauce, or this vanilla sauce for bread pudding, to drizzle on top!
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 3-Ingredient Brown Sugar 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 3-Ingredient Brown Sugar Sauce:
You’ll need the following, everyday ingredients:
- butter (I used salted but unsalted butter works just fine!)
- brown sugar
- 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, I add in a tablespoon or so of brown sugar, and a teaspoon of vanilla extract.
Stir to combine and remove from heat. Let rest about 1-2 minutes, use the whisk to mix up the brown sugar and butter mixture and pour on top of the cooked bread pudding.
The little chunks of brown sugar candied and let a bit of a crunch, which was the PERFECT addition to this soft texture that the bread pudding has. (You can see how it turns out with the sauce, in the image below.)
How to Make Vanilla Sauce for Bread Pudding
Get the creamy vanilla sauce recipe if you prefer a creamier option, instead of the buttery vanilla 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 Sauce
- 3 tablespoon butter salted (but unsalted is ok too!)
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
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.
- Then, I add in a tablespoon of brown sugar, and a teaspoon of vanilla extract.Stir to combine and remove from heat. Let rest about 1-2 minutes, use the whisk to mix up the brown sugar and butter mixture and pour on top of the cooked bread pudding.The little chunks of brown sugar candied and let a bit of a crunch, which was the PERFECT addition to this soft texture that the bread pudding has.
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, although using both may be incredible!
- 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.
Suzanne says
Is it possible to make the bread pudding the night before and bake in the morning?
Jessica says
Hi Suzanne! I don’t see why not! 🙂
Spudino says
So delicious!!!
CM says
Delicious! Nice custard and made me feel nostalgic. Altered the sugar to 1/4 white sugar and 1/2cup brown sugar. Altered the dairy: used 5 tablespoons melted butter on the cubed (ripped stale bread & hot dog buns) bread.
Jessica says
Yum! Love hearing how you made this bread pudding, thank you so much for sharing and for leaving a review!
jayne says
The best
Maureen says
Great !
Annette says
Made this today. It was very good. I grew up eating this. My mom made it often. I will be making this again
Keri says
This turned out so perfectly! I used Texas Road House rolls as my base, torn into small pieces and baked them for 5 minutes as you suggested since they were so moist. I let them cool for a while too. I also added a tiny dash of nutmeg & cardamom to my cinnamon because I love those flavors too. I doubled the recipe and cooked it in a deep aluminum pan for a potluck that we needed to leave early from. I placed that on a sheet pan so the bottom wouldn’t burn. It took an extra 10 minutes to cook thoroughly since it was deep dish. NOTE to those making the butter brown sugar sauce – first, I used a little more brown sugar to make it go farther AND, I whisked it constantly until completely dissolved and smooth because that is what my Alexa smart speaker suggested to keep it from separating. It worked!
Jessica says
Keri this sounds absolutely wonderful, thank you so much for sharing!
Leisa and John Rigby says
Hello Jessica! I wanted a sweet pudding for’AFTERS’ (Dessert in the UK). I simply typed in Bread Pudding at the request of my hubs. Your recipe seemed the most interesting. We tried it and we both had great comments. Moist, just as we like it and so creamy. He likes the corners and I go for the centre…always. We had only one correction to share: Bread Pudding originated in the UK in Medieval times. But we’re happy to share the love of it with Louisianna and everyone else! Cheers!
Jessica says
Hello Leisa! Thank you so much for letting me know that you liked this bread pudding recipe and for the tip on the UK in medieval times! 🙂 So glad you liked it!
STol says
I feel like this should be covered with foil for the thirty minutes?
Jessica says
Hi there. As long as your oven rack is in the middle of your oven, it shouldn’t need covered. I hope that helps.
DHiggs says
Jessica, What a fabulous bread pudding recipe and oh, so easy. Restaurant quality really, every bite is moist and full of flavor. I added raisins and will add more next time and plan to also try with pecans next time as well. The vanilla sauce was an excellent addition, along with vanilla ice cream too. Great dessert for any occasion. Because I am non-dairy I did make some substitutions for that. I swapped out coconut milk and some non-dairy creamer (nut pod brand) for milk & cream substitutes for the bread pudding & the vanilla sauce recipes and it worked out quite well. Thanks so much for posting!
Jessica says
This is so great, and I’m so glad that you liked it! It’s also great to know that you made a dairy free bread pudding! Thank you so much for sharing!
Marilyn says
This bread pudding recipe I used cream, milk, Hawaiian rolls, orange zest, juice from those oranges, dried cranberries and sugar substitute made from monk fruit. It turned out delicious.
Jessica says
Hi Marilyn! Oh my that sounds delicious! Sounds similar to my cranberry orange scones recipe too, so you may love these scones!
Marilyn says
I exchanged the bacon with sweet and hot Italian sausage. It was delicious.😋
Jessica says
Hi Marilyn! I’m so glad you liked it… do you know which recipe you did this on by chance? I’d love to try it!
Helene L says
Ran out of white sugar can I use brown?
Jessica says
Hi Helene! I haven’t tried that yet but I don’t see why not!
Sheri Winchester says
Simple directions. The end result is a bread pudding that is drool worthy
Jessica says
Oh good! I’m so glad you liked this recipe too, thank you!
Heather Johnston says
Absolutely wonderful. Would recommend the recipe to anyone. Simple yet just like Grandma used to make. My husband is hanging around the kitchen like the dog, waiting for treats.
Jessica says
Haha!!! I love that so much. I’m so glad you all liked this recipe, thank you for sharing!
Jennifer says
This recipe is sooooo good and so New Orleans to me!!I I lived there for over 35 years and I always preferred a bread pudding that was buttery with cinnamon, brown sugar with no raisins.. THIS IS SIMPLE but with so much flavor!!!
Jessica says
Yay! So happy you like this bread pudding recipe, thank you for sharing!
Becca says
Not sure what I am doing wrong, but I have tried to make the bown butter sauce twice and they both split into an unpleasant oily base with sugar crystals. Not saucy at all.Bread pudding itself is tasty though.
Jessica says
Hi Becca! It very well may not be anything you’re doing. Sometimes the type of butter can make a difference too. I don’t think the bread pudding needs a sauce but if you really want one, you may want to try the vanilla sauce!
Christine says
I had the same problem, once you melt everything together I fixed it by taking it off the heat and mixing constantly for about 5ish minutes
Andrea says
This has become a staple in our household. It’s so easy and amazingly delicious. That vanilla sauce is life changing! I like to use a mix of French bread and Pepperidge Farm cinnamon breakfast bread as my base.
Jessica says
This sounds incredible, and I’m so glad that you liked it! Thank you so much for sharing!
Angel says
Made with day old croissants (so reduced the butter) and added a splash of bourbon to the hot brown butter sauce. Served warm, it was near perfection with a cup of tea on a chilly afternoon.
Jessica says
Oh my goodness this all sounds delicious! Thank you for sharing!
Sherry says
This bread pudding is delicious, however, I could only give it 4 stars instead of 5 because there was way too much salt in the vanilla sauce. The vanilla sauce called for a half teaspoon of salt which was way more salt than was needed. My sister described the sauce as harsh. Next time I will use 1/4 teaspoon of salt or maybe even 1/8 teaspoon then I think it will be perfect. I made this bread pudding using Hawaiian sweet rolls, hot dog buns and white bread. I also used 3/4 C pecans instead of raisins.
Jessica says
Thanks for sharing, Sherry.
Drew says
Sorry sherry, I just read the recipe 3 times. Neither one of the sauces included in the bread pudding have any salt in them.
Chris says
The Vanilla sauce recipe (linked above in the Optional Creamy Vanilla Sauce recipe) includes 1/2 tsp of salt.