Festive Foodie: Brown Butter Bread Pudding

Although I don’t recall anyone ever telling me that bread pudding was/is a dessert specifically reserved for the holiday season only, I also don’t recall ever eating it at any other time of year other than Christmastime and thus, the tradition of both baking and enjoying it in the days or weeks leading up to Christmas Day was born.

There’s a lot of ways to make bread pudding, and almost all of them are simple and require only a handful of ingredients. This version, a longtime favorite of mine, is no different – although this one also comes with the bonus of a delicious brown butter sauce you can drizzle on top for more flavor, too!

WHAT YOU’LL NEED:

6 SERVINGS:

FOR THE PUDDING:

6 slices stale bread (or about 4-5 cups of broken bread pieces or cubes.)
3 tablespoons of butter
4 beaten eggs
2 cups milk
¾ cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Raisins (optional)

FOR THE BROWN BUTTER SAUCE:

3 tablespoons salted butter
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-2 tablespoons milk or heavy cream

WHAT YOU’LL DO:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and use 1 Tablespoon of butter to coat the inside of an 8-inch square baking dish. Break your bread into the buttered baking dish.

2. Melt your remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, and drizzle over bread pieces.

3. In a bowl, mix remaining ingredients until fully and evenly combined. Pour this mixture over the bread, making sure to evenly coat each piece. Bake for 45-40 minutes.

4. MAKE THE BROWN BUTTER SAUCE. In a small saucepan, melt (on high) the 3 tablespoons of salted butter. Once melted, reduce to medium heat and allow the butter to begin browning.

5. Reduce heat to a simmer. Add in a tablespoon of brown sugar and the 1 to 2 tablespoons of milk/cream. Stir to combine, and then pour over the cooled/cooling bread pudding to serve.

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I recently made a batch of this for an afternoon/holiday preparation session at Stef’s where I served it with some scoops of vanilla ice cream, and it was divine!

So divine, in fact, that I may start making this throughout the year – and not just in December – so I can enjoy it way more often!