Irish Bread Pudding

My whole family loves bread pudding. It’s so warm, ooey, gooey, and full of flavor. Such amazingness from humble ingredients! This Irish Bread Pudding is just about the tastiest thing on the planet and is easier to make than you might think!

My husband is Irish, and I try to honor his Irish heritage by making scrumptious Irish meals and desserts. This Irish Bread Pudding is one of our favorites! It’s a dark and white bread pudding, and it has the perfect blend between sweet and savory.

Irish Bread Pudding

This Irish black and white pudding is the ideal finish to an Irish dinner party or when you need the perfect St. Patrick’s Day dessert. It’s inspired by watching my husband’s Aunt Kay, who we visited with when we were last in Dublin. We have fond memories of her making the rich chocolate sauce we drizzled over her amazing Irish bread pudding.

I’ve made this bread pudding the Irish way. It’s made with Irish cream liqueur and a whole lot of love. I serve it with the same warm and genuine hospitality our Irish family shows us whenever we visit their amazing country.

Gather these ingredients

• Heavy whipping cream
• Irish cream liqueur – I use Bailey’s.
• Sugar
• Vanilla extract
• Cornstarch
• French bread – A baguette works well.
• Bittersweet chocolate
• White chocolate
• Eggs
• Whole milk
• Nonstick cooking spray 

What kind of bread makes the best bread pudding?

You want to ensure that your bread is bakery bread – it’s usually higher quality than grocery store bread. Look for bread with a good crusty exterior but still plenty of fluffy bread inside. I like using French bread – it has a great bread-to-crust ratio. 

How to make the best Irish Bread Pudding

Bread pudding is so easy to make! You just need a saucepan, an electric mixer, and a 9×13-inch baking dish.

• • Combine half the heavy whipping cream with the Irish liqueur, sugar, and vanilla in a saucepan and bring it to a boil over medium heat.
  • Mix the cornstarch and water in a small bowl and whisk this into the cream mixture.
  • Boil the sauce until it thickens, then cool and refrigerate it until it is cold. 
  • Combine the bread, chocolate, and white chocolate in a large bowl and toss to blend. 
  • Beat the eggs with an electric or stand mixer and add the sugar and vanilla and milk.
  • Gradually add the cream until well mixed.
  • Add the cream mixture to the bread cubes and stir to combine. Set it aside to rest for about 30 minutes.
  • Preheat your oven to 350-F. Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
  • Transfer the bread mixture to the baking dish and spread it out evenly. Drizzle the remaining cream over the top and sprinkle with the rest of the sugar.
  • Bake the Irish bread pudding until set in the middle.
  • Warm the sauce before serving and drizzle it over the warm bread pudding.
  • Enjoy!

Tips & substitutions 

• You can make the bread pudding sauce up to 3 days in advance. Keep it in an airtight container in the fridge until ready you’re ready to warm it up before serving.
• Whole milk makes the richest bread pudding, but you can use whatever you have.
• Bittersweet chocolate can be found in the baking aisle of your grocery store. You could use semisweet chocolate instead; unsweetened chocolate is not the same and should not be used in this recipe.
• How do you know when bread pudding is cooked? It’ll be golden brown around the edges and set – not still runny – in the middle.

Serving suggestions

This Irish Bread Pudding recipe is perfect after a meal of Guinness Pot Roast or Guinness Beef Stew, or a lighter meal like this Irish Flag Spinach Salad.

If you really want to dress up this bread pudding, you can serve it with a dollop of fresh whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream. But this bread pudding recipe is perfect all on its own.

Storage

Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.

Check out these awesome Irish dessert recipes while you’re here

• Irish Guinness Cupcakes
• Bailey’s Irish Cream Cake
• Chocolate Pudding Bundt Cake with Guinness Glaze 
• Irish Apple Cake

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Irish Bread Pudding

This Irish Bread Pudding is so easy to make with French bread, and white and dark chocolate. Serve with a wawrm cream sauce drizzled on top!

Prep Time: 2 hours hrs 40 minutes mins

Cook Time: 1 hour hr

Total Time: 3 hours hrs 40 minutes mins

Yield: 8

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Ingredients

 

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For the sauce:

• 4 cups heavy whipping cream, divided
• 6 Tbsp Irish cream liqueur
• ¼ cup sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 2 tsp water

For the bread pudding:

• 14 cups French bread with crust, cut into ¾" cubes, about 12 ounces
• 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 6 ounces imported white chocolate, chopped
• 4 eggs, large
• ½ cup sugar, + 2 Tbps sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• ½ cup whole milk
• Nonstick vegetable oil spray

Instructions

 

Make the sauce:

• Bring 2 cups whipping cream, liqueur, sugar, and vanilla to boil in heavy medium saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. Mix cornstarch and 2 teaspoons water in small bowl to blend; whisk into cream mixture.
• Boil until sauce thickens, stirring constantly, about 3 minutes. Cool, then cover and refrigerate until cold, about 2 hours. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.)

Make the bread pudding:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish with nonstick spray.
• Combine bread, chocolate, and white chocolate in large bowl; toss to blend.
• Using electric mixer, beat eggs, ½ cup sugar, vanilla, and milk in another large bowl to blend.
• Gradually beat in 1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream. Add cream mixture to bread mixture; stir to combine. Let stand 30 minutes.
• Transfer bread mixture to prepared dish, spreading evenly. Drizzle with remaining 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar.
• Bake pudding until edges are golden and custard is set in center, about 1 hour. Cool pudding slightly.
• Warm up the sauce and drizzle the bread pudding with the sauce and serve warm.

Notes

Reposted from March 2018.

Cuisine: Irish

Course: Dessert

Author: Sandy / Reluctant Entertainer

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