Pumpkin Bread Pudding (Salted Caramel Sauce)
This scrumptious homemade Pumpkin Bread Pudding is crafted with leftover bread, baked in a pumpkin custard, and drizzled with a salted caramel sauce. The best thing you will bake this fall!
Why You’ll Love This
This pumpkin bread pudding recipe captures the essence of fall with the warm, comforting taste of pumpkin and spices. It’s perfect for family desserts or holiday gatherings like Thanksgiving and Christmas!
I adapted our favorite bread pudding recipe with the addition of pumpkin puree and pumpkin spices.
- Rich and Creamy – As with most bread puddings this has a velvety, melt-in-your-mouth texture that’s incredibly satisfying.
- Sweet and Salty – The salted caramel sauce adds a delightful contrast to the sweet pumpkin custard, creating a perfect balance of flavors.
- Easy Preparation – Bread pudding is one of the easiest desserts to make! Just mix the custard ingredients, pour over the bread, and let it soak before baking.
Some of our other favorite fall dessert recipes to make are Better Than Starbucks Pumpkin Bread, Soft Snickerdoodle Cookies, Spicy Gingerbread Recipe, and Crispy Eggnog Cookies.
Key Ingredients
Please see the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and instructions.
- Pumpkin – Pure pumpkin puree is the star of this pumpkin bread pudding recipe, providing a rich, earthy sweetness and a velvety texture.
- Bread – The bread that works best for bread pudding is French bread, Italian bread, artisan bread, sourdough, brioche, or challah. Day old crusty bread that is slightly stale works best, so use that leftover bread for a decadent dessert.
- Eggs, Milk, and Heavy Cream – The large eggs act as a binder and provide structure to the pudding. Whole milk and heavy cream help create a moist and tender consistency in the bread cubes as they soak and bake
- Spices and Vanilla Extract – Ground cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and pure vanilla extract together, enhance the overall flavor profile, creating a well-rounded taste.
- Granulated Sugar and Kosher Salt – Adds sweetness and balances out the flavor.
- Pecans – Toasted chopped pecans add a nice nutty flavor and a little crunch. Feel free to omit the pecans.
Salted Caramel Sauce Ingredients
- Unsalted butter – Butter creates a creamy, smooth texture in the caramel sauce.
- Dark Brown Sugar – The caramelization of brown sugar imparts a rich, deep flavor and golden color to the sauce.
- Heavy Cream – Heavy cream helps to thin the caramelized sugar and create a velvety consistency. It also adds a creaminess to the sauce.
- Kosher Salt – The addition of salt is crucial for balancing the sweetness of the caramel. It creates a contrast, enhancing the overall flavor profile with a sweet and salty combination.
- Dark Corn Syrup – Corn syrup contains glucose, which inhibits the crystallization of sugar. Preventing sugar crystals from forming is crucial to achieving a smooth and silky texture. Without a syrup like corn syrup, caramel can become grainy and unpleasant.
How to Make Pumpkin Bread Pudding
How to Make Salted Caramel Sauce
Serving
Serve warm pumpkin bread pudding with a drizzle of salted caramel sauce. I do this on individual servings instead of over the whole pan. Or you can substitute a drizzle of pure maple syrup.
Add a final touch with a sprinkle of powdered sugar, a dollop of whipped cream, or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Tips
- Stale bread is ideal as it absorbs the custard mixture better, resulting in a better texture.
- Cut the bread into uniform cubes to ensure even soaking and cooking.
- Allow the bread cubes to dry out a bit by leaving them out on a baking sheet for a few hours or overnight. This helps the bread absorb the custard mixture effectively.
- Allow the bread pudding to rest for at least 20 minutes after removing it from the oven. This helps it set and makes it easier to slice and serve. It will be puffed up right after baking, as it cools it will deflate a little.
- Use canned pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling. Pumpkin pie filling has been sweetened and seasoned with additional spices.
FAQs
If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice you can use 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/3 teaspoon ground ginger, and 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves. Omit the extra teaspoon of cinnamon in the recipe because this is about 3 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice.
Any crusty stale bread such as raisin bread, French, Italian, Challah, sourdough, or artisan bread.
Yes, fresh pumpkin puree would work.
Bread pudding is done when the center is set, and the top is golden brown. To test, insert a toothpick into the center – it should come out clean.
Absolutely! Bread pudding is perfect for making a day in advance because it needs time for the bread to soak up the custard. This can be made up to 24 hours in advance and refrigerated until ready to bake.
Let any leftovers cool completely, cover tightly, and refrigerate for up to 4 days. Reheat at 350 degrees F until warmed through.
Bread pudding freezes beautifully! Let it cool completely, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, or place it in a freezer safe airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator.
More Pumpkin Desserts
Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Salted Caramel Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
Bread Pudding
- 1 pound Loaf of day-old French bread, cut into 1" cubes (about 8 cups)
- 8 large Eggs
- 3 1/2 cups Whole milk
- 1 1/2 cups Heavy whipping cream
- 1 15oz Pumpkin puree not pumpkin pie mix
- 1 1/2 cups Granulated sugar
- 2 tsp Vanilla extract
- 1 tsp Ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp Pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 tsp Kosher salt
- 3/4 cup Pecans toasted and rough chopped
Salted Caramel Sauce
- 1/4 cup Unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup Dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup Heavy whipping cream
- 3 tbsp Dark corn syrup
- 1 tsp Kosher salt
Instructions
Bread Pudding
- Cut the bread into 1-inch cubes and place in a very large bowl or spread out on a baking sheet to sit out for 24 hours.1 pound Loaf of day-old French bread, cut into 1" cubes
- Butter a 9 x 13 baking dish. Set aside.
- In a large bowl whisk the eggs to blend. Add the milk, cream, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Whisk to combine thoroughly.8 large Eggs, 3 1/2 cups Whole milk, 1 1/2 cups Heavy whipping cream, 1 1/2 cups Granulated sugar, 2 tsp Vanilla extract, 1 tsp Ground cinnamon, 2 tsp Pumpkin pie spice, 1/2 tsp Kosher salt, 1 15oz Pumpkin puree
- Toss the pecans on top of the bread cubes. Pour the egg mixture over the cubed bread and stir to coat and blend evenly. Pour into the buttered baking dish spread out evenly, and press down for a more uniform slice or leave as is for crusty edges on top. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours to overnight. (overnight preferred)3/4 cup Pecans
- Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Uncover the pudding and bake for about 1 hour up to 1 hour and 15 minutes until puffed up and golden brown. ( the pudding will fall as it cools)
- Let the pudding cool for at least 20 minutes before serving.
Salted Caramel Sauce
- In a medium saucepan over medium high heat stir together the butter, brown sugar, heavy cream, corn syrup, and salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium low, and simmer for 3 minutes stirring frequently.Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.1/4 cup Unsalted butter, 1/2 cup Dark brown sugar, 1/2 cup Heavy whipping cream, 3 tbsp Dark corn syrup, 1 tsp Kosher salt