Bread and Butter Pudding With Hot Cross Buns

Why You'll Love This Recipe:

• This recipe is mixed in one bowl, which means you have less to clean.
• It is a quick dish that you can prepare in less than 15 minutes.
• You are saving money because instead of throwing out leftover bread, you are using it to make a delicious dessert.
• Bread and butter pudding can be enjoyed hot or at room temperature. 

Ingredients In This Recipe

The printable recipe further down the page has the complete list of ingredients, including quantities and step-by-step instructions.

Hot cross buns - you will need three average-sized hot cross buns that are at least one to two days old.

Milk and cream - We like this combination with a little more milk than cream, but you can use all milk or all cream depending on how rich you like your bread puddings.

Eggs - use large eggs.

White sugar - we use one tablespoon in this recipe to give the custard a hint of sweetness. If you like a sweeter dessert, add a little more sugar.

Sultanas - or use another dried fruit of your choice. These will give you mouth bursts of sweetness as you eat the pudding.

Flavorings - vanilla extract, orange zest, and mixed spice powder. If you don't have mixed spice powder, use cinnamon powder instead.

Butter - is a must because without the butter it won't be a bread and butter pudding. We use salted butter but you could also use unsalted butter.

Brown sugar - helps with browning the top of the pudding and gives it a nice little crunch.

Step By Step Instructions

Step 1 - Grease the inside of a baking dish with butter.

Step 2 - Whisk together the wet ingredients and flavorings.

Step 3 - Gently fold in the bread, sultanas, and nuts and leave to soak for 5 - 10 minutes.

Step 4 -Transfer to a baking dish, dot with butter and sprinkle over brown sugar.

Step 5 - Bake for 25 - 30 minutes or until just set. Remove from the oven and allow to stand for 30 minutes before serving. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Recipe Tips

• You will need about 3 average-sized hot cross buns for this recipe.
• Cut or tear the bread into 2 cm cubes (a little smaller than 1 inch).
• Weigh the bread rather than using a cup to measure because it will give you the best results. We like to weigh the bread because not all hot cross buns are the same size and weight. 
• If using cups to measure, lightly pack it just to the top of the cup, rather than forcing the bread into it. If you over-pack the bread into the cup, there will be too much bread in the pudding, and it won't be the right consistency.
• The average-sized hot cross buns that we can buy locally, weigh about 80 grams (almost 3 ounces) each which is equal to about 1 cup of cubed bread.

Variations

• To make this Easter bread and butter pudding with hot cross buns with no cream,  replace the cream in this recipe with milk.
• Make a chocolate hot cross bread and butter pudding using chocolate chip hot cross buns and replace the nuts in this recipe with chocolate chips.
• Don't have hot cross buns. Use leftover fruit loaf, fruit buns, or any sweet type of bread to make bread and butter pudding.
• For a lighter version, instead of using one cup of cream, use one cup of milk.

Scale The Recipe

We used this base recipe which makes 2 servings: 1 average-sized hot cross bun (80 grams / 1 cup) cubed + 1 large egg + ½ cup milk or cream + any add-ins or flavorings you like to add. For example: 

• To make a 2 hot cross bun bread and butter pudding (serves 4). You will need 2 hot cross buns (160 grams / 2 cups) cubed + 2 large eggs + 1 cup milk or cream + any add-ins or flavorings you like.
• To make a 3 hot cross bun bread and butter pudding (serves 6), please scroll down the page for a printable recipe.
• To make a 4 hot cross bun bread and butter pudding (serves 8). You will need 4 hot cross buns (320 grams / 4 cups) cubed + 4 large eggs + 2 cups milk or cream + any add-ins or flavorings you like.

Serving Size

This recipe makes 6 large servings.

Calories Per Serve

The calories in the recipe are based six serving, each serving being about 467 calories.

Serving Suggestions

Serve bread and butter pudding with hot cross buns hot or at room temperature with ice cream, custard, or whipped cream.

Storage

Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 2 days. You can reheat the leftovers in the oven or the microwave.

Reheating

To reheat in the oven - cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F) for about 10 minutes or until hot.

To heat individual servings in the microwave oven - place in a microwave-safe dish and microwave in 10-15 second bursts on high until heat through.

Frequently Asked Questions

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