The Best Bread Pudding

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen, 2007

Show: Paula's Home CookingEpisode: Great Bake-off

Rated: 4 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (190)

RECIPE
COMMENTS & REVIEWS(190)

Cook Time:
50 min
Level:
Easy
Yield:
8 to 10 servings

Times:

Prep: 10 min
Inactive Prep: 24 hr 10 min
Cook: 50 min
Total:: 25 hr 10 min

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Ingredients

2 cups granulated sugar
5 large beaten eggs
2 cups milk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3 cups cubed Italian bread, allow to stale overnight in a bowl
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened
1 cup chopped pecans

For the sauce:

1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 egg, beaten
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup brandy

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 13 by 9 by 2-inch pan.

Mix together granulated sugar, eggs, and milk in a bowl; add vanilla. Pour over cubed bread and let sit for 10 minutes.

In another bowl, mix and crumble together brown sugar, butter, and pecans.

Pour bread mixture into prepared pan. Sprinkle brown sugar mixture over the top and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until set. Remove from oven.

For the sauce:

Mix together the granulated sugar, butter, egg, and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir together until the sugar is melted. Add the brandy, stirring well. Pour over bread pudding. Serve warm or cold.

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Comments & Reviews

recipe The Best Bread Pudding
Katie East Moriches, NY 02-07-2010
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GREAT
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

Great COMFORT food!!! This has been a hit !!
recipe The Best Bread Pudding
Dr. Ruth Jacksonville, FL 02-06-2010
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Too Much Sugar, Did Variations Hmmmmmm Simply Dellicious
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

Bravo, Bravo! For years I have searced for a very good "Bread Pudding" recipe" and thank you Paula Dean, yours are the best.... However, I made the original recipe and sure enough it was toooo sweet for my husband and myself. Then we were having the Super Bowl Party and I needed a much larger pudding and I decided to give it another try. But this time I decided to use my own variations as follows. 2 loaves Itallan Bread (soften in milk and stirred well) 3 cups granulated sugar 6 large beaten eggs 1 stick butter, softened 7 cups milk or enough milk to cover the bread broken up pieces 1 sm bottle pure vanilla flavor 2 cups packed light brown sugar 2 cups walnuts or pecans chopped For the sauce: 2 cups granulated sugar 1stick butter melted 3 large eggs beaten 1 tabl pure vanilla flavor 1/2 cup brandy Directions for Puddng: Pre heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two 13 by 9 by 2-inch pans. Mix together granulated sugar, eggs and milk in a bowl; add vanilla. Pour over soften bread and stir well. In anoher bowl mix and crumble together brown sugar, butter and pecans. Pour bread mixture into pepared pans. Sprinkle brown sugar mixture over the top and bake for 45 minutes or until set. Remove from oven For the sauce: Mix together te granulated sugar, butter, eggs, and vanilla in a saucepan over low heat. Stir together until the sugar is melted. Add the brandy, stirring well. Pour over bread pudding. Serve warm or cold Hmmmmm simply deliciouosRead more
recipe The Best Bread Pudding
ERIKA WEST SACRAMENTO, CA 02-06-2010
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WAY TO MUCH SUGAR.
Rated: 3 stars out of 5

After reading the reviews, I cut the sugar in half. I easily could have added only 1/2 cup of sugar to the milk and eggs... instead of the 1 cup and enjoyed the dish much more. The brown sugar and pecans on top are delicious, but they add enough sweetness for the whole dish. The sauce was good if you like the taste of brandy. (My boyfriend liked it.) Overall it was a good recipe, just too sweet. (and I have a pretty healthy sweet tooth.)Read more
recipe The Best Bread Pudding
c richmond, VA 02-03-2010
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Terrible
Rated: 1 stars out of 5

Inedible, disgustingly oversweet recipe. Consensus is that recipe has twice as much sugar and half as much bread as... needed. This is a recipe?! This is easy? You'd better be a very experienced cook and know how to adjust quantities before trying this one. But for a very experienced cook that they would need a recipe for bread pudding is doubtful.Read more
recipe The Best Bread Pudding
Gayle Lakewood, OH 02-01-2010
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Wouldn't change one thing.
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I made this last night on a lark. Since I had a bag of cubed dried bread from a loaf of really good French bread. I read the... reviews and they seemed pretty split. I'm not a big dessert eater but I was in the mood for a really wonderful one yesterday. I cook desserts for others for the most part. Long story short if I wanted to make bread pudding again it would be this unaltered recipe. Fabulous. What's the point of eating dessert if your going to worry about the calories? My husband the sweet eater told me he loved it. There you go.Read more
recipe The Best Bread Pudding
wendy brooklyn, NY 01-24-2010
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Delicious
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I did make this recipe as written & found it way too sweet. I cut down the sugar to half & it was amazing. The brandy sauce... tops off the pudding, making it absolutely sinful. We had the leftovers cold & still enjoyed it. Read more