Bread and butter pudding recipe

It’s traditional, it’s British and it takes everyday ingredients and turns them into something magical. Bread and butter pudding is a delicious baked dessert that has long satisfied sweet cravings and brings a little moment of bliss to people’s lives.

A quick guide to the long history of bread and butter pudding

One of the earliest published recipes for bread and butter pudding is by Eliza Smith The complete housewifefirst published in 1728.

Eliza Smith was an English cookery writer and her early recipe consisted of slices of bread soaked in warm milk or cream, mixed with sugar, nutmeg and orange zest and then baked until firm.

Eliza Smith’s recipe played a major role in popularizing bread-and-butter pudding, and bad times and rationing helped cement its appeal — families eagerly turned stale bread into a delicious and affordable treat, wasting nothing and created something delicious from humble ingredients.

Because of its simplicity, accessibility, and versatility, the dish has enjoyed an enduring popularity that few other desserts can match.

What is bread and butter pudding?

To make bread and butter pudding, you take stale bread, butter it, and pour it over a custard mix. It’s baked until set and—amazingly—you end up with a dessert that’s really hard to beat. The contrast between the warm, pudding-like inside and the slightly crunchy top makes it extra special.

Bread and Butter Pudding is a great example of imaginative cooking and minimizing food waste.

The recipe for bread and butter pudding

This Bread and Butter Pudding recipe is my Nan Mac’s version.

The whole family has loved it for years, but my dad loves it so much he wrote down the ingredients himself years ago to make sure mom made it the same way her mom Nan Mac did.

This little record of the recipe is in shorthand and is missing a few things, so keep scrolling for the full recipe.

Ingredients for bread and butter pudding

What you might notice about this recipe is that it uses powdered milk instead of milk and/or cream.

That’s right, my grandma insisted that you get a much better result with powdered milk, especially in terms of texture.

Okay, now that we’ve established the main feature of this recipe, here is the full list of ingredients:

• slices of bread (thicker, slices of toast)
• buttersofter
• sultanas (Optional)
• milk powder
• Sugar
• vanilla extract
• eggs
• boiling water
• ground nutmeg (Optional).

You can find the quantities of the ingredients in the recipe card at the end of this article.

How to make bread and butter pudding

Prepare

Start by preheating the oven to 190 degrees Celsius/375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Grease a casserole dish (about 2 liters) with butter.

For this recipe you will also need another, slightly larger casserole dish.

Butter your bread

Cut the crust off the bread slices and cut each slice in half diagonally.

Spread both sides of the bread with butter.

Arrange the slices and pour the custard over them

Arrange half of the bread in the dish and sprinkle with half of the sultanas.

Spread the rest of the bread on top and sprinkle with the remaining sultanas.

Cream together milk powder, sugar, vanilla, eggs and boiling water. Pour over the layered bread slices.

Sprinkle with nutmeg if you like.

Bake your pudding

Place the casserole dish in the larger casserole dish and fill the larger casserole dish halfway to the brim of the smaller casserole dish with boiling water.

Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes or until golden and set.

Enjoy bread and butter pudding

Serve your pudding warm, with ice cream or whipped cream for extra indulgence.

That’s my personal preference!

You can also eat it cold, dust with powdered sugar, drizzle with chocolate, sprinkle with chopped nuts or serve with a fruit compote.

You can vary the recipe by:

• Customize the bread – use brioche, croissants or hot cross buns for a richer dessert
• Give it a twist – You can add different flavors (e.g. citrus zest) and spices (e.g. cinnamon or cardamom) to give the pudding aromatic flavors, or a layer of sliced ​​bananas, berries or a sprinkling of chocolate chips add place of sultanas.

Recipe FAQs

Q. How long does it keep?

This pudding needs to be refrigerated and is best eaten within the first few days.

Q. Can you freeze bread and butter pudding?

Apparently you can.

I’ve never tried this as it’s one of those things that I only put together at the last moment and get devoured quickly.

Q. What is the best way to reheat the pudding?

Place in the preheated oven at 180°C for 10-15 minutes. Cover with foil and uncover a few minutes before removing. You can also reheat it in the microwave.

Q. Do you have other recipes that use stale bread?

Yes. Check out my recipes for Chester Cakes, Meatballs, Christmas Pudding and Salmon Bread Cases.

Q. Do you have any other pudding recipes?

A lot! Find them all here.