Old-fashioned Bread Pudding

It’s been a long time since I’ve made a bread pudding, but so many of you have been asking for one — so here we are. And I’m so glad we are, because this kitchen smells absolutely delicious right now.

This recipe is one I’ve actually never made before. A friend recently shared a cookbook with me from the Daughters of the American Revolution — you might know it as the DAR. Different chapters across the country put together cookbooks like this one, and they’re full of recipes from the ladies in their chapter. The bread pudding recipe I’m sharing today is inspired by one of those recipes, with just a few tweaks of my own.

Now here’s a little tidbit about me that you probably don’t know. In my senior year of high school, I was actually named the DAR Good Citizen for my graduating class. Different DAR chapters around the country give that award to one senior every year, and somehow it was me. And the funny part? Years later at our 20th class reunion, they ran through a list of trivia questions to see how much we remembered from high school — and one of them was “who was the DAR Good Citizen?”

Nobody remembered. Not a single person. So apparently I didn’t make as big an impression as the title might suggest. But I always remember it, and when my friend handed me this cookbook with the bread pudding recipe in it, it felt like the right one to share with you today.

The other thing I love about this recipe is how forgiving it is. The bread can be any kind — sandwich bread, leftover biscuits, the heel of a French loaf that’s gone a little dry. In fact, the drier and more crumbly your bread, the better it’ll soak up that custard. This is one of those dishes that turns “I don’t know what to do with this” into something the whole family is going to ask for again.

And the warm lemon sauce — that’s the part that really makes it. It’s just sugar, flour, a little water, butter, and a touch of lemon. But pour it warm over a slice of this pudding and it tastes like something you’d order at a really good Southern restaurant.

Let me show you how to put it all together.

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Old Fashioned Bread Pudding with Warm Lemon Sauce

Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 45 minutes to 1 hour Total Time: About 1 hour 15 minutes Servings: 10–12

Ingredients

For the Bread Pudding:

• 8 cups breadcrumbs (about 1 standard loaf, or any bread you have on hand — leftover biscuits work great)
• 4 cups milk
• 6 tablespoons butter, melted
• 6 large eggs, beaten
• ⅔ cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Pinch of salt

For the Warm Lemon Sauce:

• ½ cup sugar
• 1½ tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup boiling water
• 2 tablespoons butter
• Pinch of nutmeg
• Pinch of salt
• 1½ teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9×13 baking dish and set aside. You’ll also want a larger pan or baking sheet on hand for the water bath.
2. Scald the milk. Pour 4 cups of milk into a saucepan and heat over medium, stirring often, until the milk is hot and just barely starting to steam — right around 180°F. You don’t want it to come to a boil. The whole process happens fast at the end, so stay close and keep stirring so it doesn’t stick to the bottom.
3. Prepare the bread. While the milk heats, tear your bread into small pieces — they don’t have to be uniform. You want about 8 cups total. I didn’t count exactly, but it was around a dozen slices for me. Place the breadcrumbs in a large mixing bowl.
4. Melt the butter. Pop 6 tablespoons of butter in the microwave for 30 seconds or so to melt. Set aside to cool slightly.
5. Pour the scalded milk over the bread. Pour the hot milk right over your breadcrumbs and give it a good stir to make sure all the bread is in the liquid. You’ll see the breadcrumbs shrink down right away as they soak up the milk.
6. Mix the custard. In a separate bowl, beat the 6 eggs. Add the melted butter, sugar, vanilla, nutmeg, and a pinch of salt. Stir until well combined, then pour the egg mixture into the soaked bread and stir everything together gently.
7. Pour into the pan. Transfer the mixture to your greased 9×13 baking dish.
8. Set up the water bath. Place a larger baking sheet or roasting pan in the middle of your oven and pour hot water into it. Set the bread pudding pan right down in the middle of the hot water. The water bath keeps the pudding from drying out and gives it that lovely custardy texture.
9. Bake at 350°F for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Start checking at 45 minutes by sliding a knife into the center — when it comes out clean, it’s done. Mine took right at 45 minutes.
10. Make the warm lemon sauce while the pudding bakes. In a small saucepan (off the heat for now), whisk together ½ cup sugar and 1½ tablespoons flour. Use the back of your spoon to break up any lumps — this is easier to do before you add liquid.
11. Add the boiling water slowly. Pour 1 cup of boiling water into the sugar and flour mixture and stir to combine. Place the pan over medium-high heat and bring it to a boil, stirring the whole time. Once it boils, let it cook for about 5 minutes — it’ll thicken into a light syrup as it goes.
12. Finish the sauce. Pull the pan off the heat. Stir in 2 tablespoons of butter and let it melt right in. Add a pinch of nutmeg, a pinch of salt, and 1½ teaspoons of lemon juice. Stir until smooth. (If you’d rather make a vanilla sauce instead, just swap the lemon juice for a teaspoon of vanilla.)
13. Serve warm. Slice the bread pudding into squares, spoon the warm lemon sauce generously over the top, and serve right away.

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Tips From My Kitchen

• Dry bread is your friend. Fresh, soft bread will work, but slightly stale or dried-out bread holds up better and soaks up the custard more evenly. This is the perfect recipe for using up leftover bread or biscuits before they go to waste.
• Don’t skip the water bath. It’s the difference between a bread pudding that’s dry and one that’s silky. Just don’t fill the outer pan so high that it sloshes — about an inch is plenty.
• The lemon sauce is the star. I know the bread pudding is technically the main event, but that warm sauce poured over the top is what makes people ask for the recipe. Make extra if your family loves it.
• Serve it warm if you can. Bread pudding tastes wonderful at room temperature too, but warm with that sauce just barely melting into it — that’s how you want to eat it.

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FAQs

Can I use any kind of bread? Yes! That’s one of the best things about bread pudding. Sandwich bread, French bread, brioche, leftover biscuits, day-old dinner rolls — they all work. Use what you have. Slightly stale bread is actually better because it soaks up the custard without falling apart.

Do I have to scald the milk? Yes, scalding the milk is what gives bread pudding its traditional custardy texture. It helps the bread absorb the liquid evenly and starts the cooking process before it even hits the oven. Don’t let it boil — just heat it until it’s hot and steaming, around 180°F.

What is a water bath and do I really need it? A water bath is just a larger pan filled with hot water that your baking dish sits inside while it cooks. It keeps the custard from getting too hot too fast, which prevents cracking, drying out, and curdled eggs. For bread pudding, it makes a real difference in texture — soft and creamy instead of dry.

Can I make this ahead of time? You can! Bread pudding actually tastes great the next day. You can bake it ahead, cool it, and refrigerate it covered for up to 3 days. Reheat individual slices in the microwave for 30 to 45 seconds, or warm the whole pan in a 300°F oven for about 15 minutes. Make the sauce fresh — it takes just a few minutes.

Can I freeze bread pudding? Yes. Let it cool completely, then wrap tightly in plastic wrap and foil. It’ll keep in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat in the oven.

What can I substitute for lemon juice in the sauce? If you’d prefer a vanilla sauce, just leave out the lemon juice and add a teaspoon of vanilla extract instead. You can also try a splash of bourbon, rum, or even a little orange juice for a different flavor profile.

My bread pudding is too dry. What did I do wrong? The most common culprits are baking too long, skipping the water bath, or not using enough liquid. Start checking at 45 minutes with a knife — when it comes out clean, it’s done. Don’t keep baking just because the top looks pale.

Can I add fruit or other mix-ins? Absolutely. Raisins are traditional — about ½ cup mixed in with the bread is perfect. You could also add chopped pecans, dried cranberries, blueberries, or chocolate chips. Stir them in right before you pour the mixture into the pan.

What’s the difference between bread pudding and French toast casserole? They’re cousins! Both use bread soaked in a sweet egg-and-milk mixture. French toast casserole usually has more eggs and is served at breakfast, often with maple syrup. Bread pudding is denser and more custardy, served as a dessert with a sweet sauce on top.

Is this recipe really from the DAR? It’s inspired by a recipe from a Daughters of the American Revolution cookbook a friend recently shared with me. I made a few tweaks of my own to make it the way our family likes it, but the bones of the recipe came from the DAR ladies — and from one in particular whose name I wish I knew.

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I hope you’ll give this old fashioned bread pudding a try in your own kitchen. It’s the kind of dessert that doesn’t ask much of you but gives back a whole lot. And if you’re like me, that first bite is going to take you right back to your grandma’s kitchen.

Remember to go out today and find somebody who needs a little bit of kindness and give them some of yours. 💛

With love, Mary Katherine