Can't decide between apple pie and bread pudding? You don't have to! This cinnamon-apple bread pudding takes cues from both, for a rich, satisfying weekend dessert or weekday breakfast.
This is a mashup of two of our favourite things: Apple pie and bread pudding. The bursts of tart apple pair perfectly with the rich, creamy, custardy bread underneath, highlighted with hits of brown sugar and cinnamon. Drizzled with maple syrup and topped with a dollop of whipped cream, it's the perfect weekend dessert. If you swapped the whipped cream for plain or vanilla yogurt, it would be suitable for a midweek breakfast, too—it's a great use of stale bread, and it can be assembled the night before and slid into the oven to wake the house on a busy morning.
Ingredients for Apple-Cinnamon Bread Pudding
½ baguette or loaf of good-quality crusty bread, or an assortment of bread ends (raisin bread works well here)
4 large eggs
½ cup pure maple syrup or honey
¼ cup packed brown sugar
2 cups half & half
1 tsp vanilla
a pinch of cinnamon
2 tbsp butter
2 baking apples (like honeycrisp or Granny Smith), chopped
2 tbsp granulated sugar
Instructions for Cinnamon-Apple Bread Pudding
- Cut or tear the bread into 1-inch chunks and place into a large bowl. In another bowl, whisk together eggs, maple syrup, brown sugar, half & half and vanilla. Pour egg mixture over the bread and let sit for at least an hour (or up to overnight), stirring occasionally. All the liquid should be well absorbed, but the bread shouldn’t turn to mush.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F when you're ready to bake bread pudding. In a small non-stick pan, heat butter over medium-high and cook the apples for a few minutes, until they start to soften. Sprinkle with granulated sugar and cook until they start to turn golden. Stir the apples into the bread mixture. Pour the bread-and-apple mixture into a greased baking dish and sprinkle cinnamon over top.
Bake for 45 minutes to an hour, until puffed and golden. Serve warm, with whipped cream if you like. Serves 6.
