This indulgent and comforting bread pudding recipe is made with French bread soaked in sweet and creamy custard and baked until golden brown. This bread pudding is flavored with lots of warm spices and topped with a decadent maple praline sauce. This is arguably the best bread pudding you've ever had!
Bread pudding is a coveted dessert in the South as well as around the world and makes the perfect make-ahead Thanksgiving or Christmas dessert!
In this recipe, crusty French bread is soaked in a sweet custard flavored with warm spices for several hours, baked until golden brown, and topped with a sweet maple praline sauce.
For more Southern desserts, check out our Southern Sweet Potato Pie and Southern Pecan Pie recipes next!
Table of Contents
Ingredients You Need to Make This Recipe
Bread Pudding
- French bread. Crusty bread that is at least a day old works best for soaking up the custard in this recipe.
- Half and half. To create the custard. You can also use a combination of milk and cream or whole milk.
- Eggs. Also used to create the custard.
- Granulated sugar. To sweeten the bread pudding.
- Brown sugar. Combined with granulated sugar for a caramel-like sweetness.
- Vanilla extract. For added flavor. Use good-quality vanilla and NOT vanilla flavoring.
- Ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. These warm spices add depth, nuttiness, and spiciness to the bread pudding.
- Salt. To highlight the flavors of the other ingredients.
- Melted butter. To pour over the bread pudding before it goes in the oven.
Maple Praline Sauce
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ cup dark brown sugar
- ½ cup pure maple syrup
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
How To Make This Recipe
- Butter a 9 x 13 baking dish. Tear the French bread into about 1-inch pieces and place it in the buttered baking dish and set it aside.
- Add the half and half, eggs, sugars, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and salt to a large mixing bowl and whisk together until well combined. Pour the custard over the bread, making sure all the bread gets covered.
- Gently press the bread into the custard with a wooden spoon so that there are no dry spots, wrap the baking dish in plastic wrap, and refrigerate the bread pudding for at least 4 hours or overnight.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Take the bread pudding out of the refrigerator and sit it on the counter while the oven preheats.
- Once the oven is hot, remove the plastic wrap from the baking dish and place the bread pudding in the preheated oven. Bake the bread pudding for 50 to 60 minutes, or until golden brown on top and set in the center.
- While the bread pudding is baking, make the maple praline sauce by combining butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, and heavy cream in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.
- Bring the sauce to a boil while stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Once the sauce reaches a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 7-9 minutes, or until the sauce is smooth and coats the back of the spoon, stirring regularly.
- Stir in the pecans, vanilla extract, and salt, and continue to cook for another 1-2 minutes. Remove the sauce from the heat.
- Serve bread pudding warm with maple praline sauce spooned over top.
What Is Bread Pudding?
Bread pudding is a dish most commonly made with stale bread, spiced custard, and sometimes raisins. The dish is said to date back to the 13th century and was once referred to as "poor man's pudding" by the English since it was made with old, leftover ingredients.
Bread pudding has transformed into a modern-day delicacy and can be found on the menus of upscale restaurants across the US and the world.
Bread pudding became very popular in the Southern US, with the New Orleans-style preparation using French bread, raisins, and bourbon or rum sauce being a favorite of many.
I grew up in Mississippi eating bread pudding made with all types of bread, including white sandwich bread, biscuits, dinner rolls, you name it! Bread pudding has always been a beloved Thanksgiving and year-round dessert for my family.
Variations and Substitutions
Feel free to serve this bread pudding without sauce or with a different type of sauce such as:
- Vanilla sauce
- Caramel sauce
- Bourbon sauce
- Rum sauce
- Chocolate sauce
- Fruit compote
You can substitute or add other spices such as:
- Cardamom
- Allspice
- Pumpkin pie spice
Frequently Asked Questions
Although bread pudding can be made with just about any kind of bread you have available, I prefer crusty bread that is at least a day or two old. My favorite kinds of bread for bread pudding are French bread, brioche, challah, and white sandwich bread.
You want bread that is sturdy enough to hold up to soaking in the egg custard and will not fall apart or become mushy. However, you can make just about any bread work as long as can be sliced or torn into pieces and is stale but not hard.
You can also try making bread pudding with some unconventional options, like biscuits, Hawaiian rolls, sourdough, ciabatta, or whole grain bread.
Using stale bread that is a day or two old is key so that it can soak up the custard. You can use fresh bread for bread pudding, but I recommend toasting it in the oven for about 10 minutes first to dry it out.
Bread pudding is done when the top is golden brown and the center is set and no longer jiggles. To check bread pudding for doneness, carefully grab both ends of the pan with covered hands, and give it a gentle shake. If the center jiggles like jello then it needs a little more time in the oven.
If the center is set and doesn't move, the bread pudding can be taken out of the oven. You can also insert a toothpick or skewer into the center of the bread pudding to check for doneness. If it comes out dry, you are good to go!
You also want to be careful not to overbake your bread pudding, which can cause it to turn out dry and hard. Bake it just until the center is set and the top is golden but not burned.
Make-Ahead and Storing Instructions
This bread pudding makes the perfect make-ahead or overnight dessert recipe. Assemble the bread pudding as directed and allow it to soak in the refrigerator for up to 12 hours until ready to bake.
The maple praline sauce can also be made a day or two in advance and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Reheat maple praline sauce on the stovetop or in the microwave.
Leftover bread pudding can be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Tips For The Best Bread Pudding
- Do not skip the soaking step. Soaking the stale bread allows it to absorb the custard to give you the most delicious bread pudding.
- Do not stir the bread and custard together. Doing so can tear the bread and leave you with a mushy mess. Instead, pour the custard over all of the bread, gently press the bread into the custard with a wooden spoon, and allow it to soak up the liquid.
- Use stale, 1 to 2-day-old bread. If using fresh bread, toast it in the oven for about 10 minutes to dry it out. On the other hand, do not use very old bread that is hard. You want bread that is dry to the touch and a bit crumbly.
Recommended Kitchen Tools For This Recipe
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📖 Recipe
The BEST Bread Pudding Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 loaf French bread (16-ounce) - 1 to 2 days old, see note
- 4 cups half and half - or 2 cups whole milk mixed with 2 cups heavy cream
- 4 large eggs
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup dark brown sugar - or light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract - NOT vanilla flavoring
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons butter - unsalted, melted
Maple Praline Sauce
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ cup dark brown sugar
- ½ cup pure maple syrup
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Butter a 9 x 13 baking dish. Tear the French bread into about 1-inch pieces and place it in the buttered baking dish and set it aside.
- Add the half and half, eggs, sugars, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and salt to a large mixing bowl and whisk together until well combined. Pour the custard over the bread, making sure all the bread gets covered.
- Gently press the bread into the custard with a wooden spoon so that there are no dry spots, wrap the baking dish in plastic wrap, and refrigerate the bread pudding for at least 4 hours or overnight.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Take the bread pudding out of the refrigerator and sit it on the counter while the oven preheats.
- Once the oven is hot, remove the plastic wrap from the baking dish, pour the melted butter over the bread pudding, and transfer it to the preheated oven. Bake the bread pudding for 50 to 60 minutes, or until golden brown on top and set in the center.
- While the bread pudding is baking, make the maple praline sauce by combining butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, and heavy cream in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.
- Bring the sauce to a boil while stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Once the sauce reaches a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 7-9 minutes, or until the sauce is smooth and coats the back of the spoon, stirring regularly.
- Stir in the pecans, vanilla extract, and salt and continue to cook for another 1-2 minutes. Remove the sauce from heat.
- Serve bread pudding warm with maple praline sauce spooned over top.
Video
Notes
- If using fresh bread, toast it in the oven for about 10 minutes to dry it out.
- This bread pudding makes the perfect make-ahead or overnight dessert recipe. Assemble the bread pudding as directed and allow it to soak in the refrigerator for up to 12 hours until ready to bake.
- The maple praline sauce can also be made a day or two in advance and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
- Leftover bread pudding can be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Mary Beth Shagena
Hi Ashley
I’m making this for a dinner party on Saturday. It doesn’t say in the directions when to put the melted butter on top. From experience probably after soaking and right before it goes in the oven?
Ashley Boyd
Hi Mary, you are correct. Step 5 instructs to pour the butter over the top before it goes into the oven. I hope you enjoy the recipe!
Pete Stein
Is this based on a 16 ounce loaf of French bread? Loaves vary a lot from store to store and I want to be sure I have the right amount of custard for the bread.
Ashley Boyd
Hi Pete. Yes, this is based on a 16-ounce loaf of French bread. Thank you for the call out. I will update the recipe to include this information.
Marlon Boyd
The title of the recipe def fits! Made this bread pudding for my Fam and they loved it! I definitely will be making this again during the holidays.
Ashley Boyd
Thank you and I'm so happy you all enjoyed the bread pudding!