Description
This Bread Pudding with Hot Buttered Rum Sauce is a rich and indulgent Southern dessert featuring golden raisins, pecans, and a luscious custard made with evaporated milk and heavy cream. Paired with a warm, buttery rum sauce that perfectly complements the tender, cinnamon-spiced bread, it offers a deeply satisfying and cozy finish to any meal.
Ingredients
Scale
For the bread pudding:
- 1 loaf of day-old bread (about 1 lb), cut into small cubes
- 4 large eggs
- 1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup (1 stick) salted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- ⅓ cup golden raisins
- 1 tablespoon rum extract (or vanilla extract)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ cup chopped pecans
For the hot buttered rum sauce:
- ½ cup (1 stick) salted butter
- 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream
- ¼ cup packed dark brown sugar
- ¼ cup dark rum (such as Myers’s)
For serving (optional):
- Vanilla ice cream
- Whipped cream
- Chopped pecans
Instructions
- Prepare the bread: Place the cubed or torn bread pieces into a large bowl and set aside. Grease a 9×13-inch baking dish with butter or cooking spray and set aside.
- Make the custard mixture: In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, evaporated milk, heavy cream, granulated sugar, melted butter, golden raisins, rum extract (or vanilla extract), ground cinnamon, and chopped pecans until fully combined.
- Combine bread and custard: Pour the custard mixture over the bread cubes. Use a spatula or your hands (wearing gloves if preferred) to toss until all bread pieces are well soaked in the custard. Set the mixture aside to rest and soak.
- Preheat the oven: Place an oven rack in the center position and preheat your oven to 350°F (177°C).
- Bake the bread pudding: Transfer the custard-soaked bread into the prepared baking dish. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until the custard is set and the bread is golden brown around the edges. Remove from the oven and let cool while preparing the sauce.
- Prepare the hot buttered rum sauce: In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the butter, sweetened condensed milk, heavy cream, and dark brown sugar. Stir gently until the butter melts and ingredients are semi-combined, then increase heat to medium-high and bring to a gentle boil while stirring occasionally. Remove from heat once boiling and stir in the dark rum until fully incorporated.
- Serve with sauce: Pour half of the warm rum sauce evenly over the baked bread pudding. Allow it to sit for at least 30 minutes to cool and absorb the sauce. Reserve the remaining sauce for serving.
- Finish and enjoy: Slice the bread pudding into wedges. Serve warm or room temperature, passing additional hot rum sauce alongside. Optionally, top with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, and extra chopped pecans for added richness and texture. If the sauce thickens upon cooling, gently reheat before serving.
Notes
- Read the full blog post for additional tips and tricks to perfect your bread pudding.
- Using day-old bread helps the custard soak without becoming too mushy.
- You can substitute rum extract with vanilla extract if preferred.
- For best results, allow the bread pudding to rest after soaking to ensure custard penetrates the bread well.
- The rum sauce can be reheated gently if it thickens too much after cooling.