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Lemon Bread Pudding

lemon bread pudding

​Lemon Bread Pudding

 

This is a real crowd pleaser. We took a recipe from New York Times Cooking, messed around with, and created a far less fiddly but just as delicious version. It’s best if you start the day before you plan to serve it so it can soak overnight, but, honestly, it’s nearly as yummy if it soaks for just an hour.

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Serves 6

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Ingredients

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  • 1 loaf brioche (1 lb.), cut into 1-inch bits

  • ½ cup/100 grams granulated sugar

  • 2 lemons, zest finely grated

  • 6 large eggs

  • 1½ cups/355 grams whole milk

  • ½ cup/120 grams heavy cream

  • 1 tablespoon orange liqueur or orange juice

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • ¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg (ideally freshly grated)

  • 2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter, for the baking dish

 

Directions

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  • Heat oven to 375 degrees. Cut your brioche into bite-sized cubes, then put into a rimmed baking dish and bake for about 10 minutes until golden brown. It’s probably not necessary, but I like to stir it around after several minutes so that everyone gets a chance to get browned.

  • While that’s going on, zest your lemons, then add the sugar and lemon zest to a large bowl. Use your fingers to rub the zest into the sugar to create a lemon sugar (this feels lovely!). Reserve 2 tablespoons for later.

  • To the lemon sugar, add the eggs, whisking (or use the whisk attachment to your stand mixer) until well combined. Whisk in whole milk, heavy cream, orange liqueur or juice, salt and nutmeg, and and keep whisking to combine.

  • Pour custard mixture on top of the toasted bread cubes and stir it around so that all the cubes are covered with custard. Let bread soak in the refrigerator for 4 hours or overnight. If you really don’t have that much time, even an hour of soaking works fine, as long as the bread is good and mushy.

  • Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9”x9” casserole dish (including the sides) with the melted butter and sprinkle the bottom of the dish with half of the reserved lemon sugar. Arrange the soaked bread cubes in the pan. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes, then sprinkle the remaining lemon sugar on top. Continue baking until everything is puffed and golden on top, 20 to 30 minutes more (stick your finger into the middle to check if it’s cooked through). Serve with a sprinkle of powdered sugar.

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