A classic British bread pudding made to use up stale bread; an early named recipe appears in Eliza Smith's The Compleat Housewife (1728). 'Bread and butter pudding'.
The top is crisp and lightly caramelised while underneath the bread turns into soft, trembling, vanilla-scented custard dotted with plump raisins. Warm, gently sweet and deeply comforting, it tastes of a childhood pudding.
The egg custard sets gently around the soaked bread as it bakes, binding everything into a soft pudding, while the exposed buttered edges crisp and caramelise in the oven's heat.
Variations
With marmalade or jam, brioche or croissant versions, with chocolate chips, whisky-soaked, panettone at Christmas
On the Palate
Where Bread and Butter Pudding sits in the British flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 6
How it's made
8 steps · 15 min active · 45 min waiting
- 15 min
Butter the slices of bread and cut them into triangles.
- 24 min
Layer the bread in a buttered dish, scattering raisins between the layers.
- 33 min
Whisk the eggs with milk, cream, sugar and vanilla to make a custard.
- 42 min
Pour the custard evenly over the bread and press down so it soaks in.
- 520 min
Let it stand so the bread absorbs the custard.
- 61 min
Grate fresh nutmeg over the top and sprinkle with a little extra sugar.
- 745 min
Bake at 180C until the custard is just set and the top is golden and crisp.
- 83 min
Rest briefly, then serve warm with cream or custard.
