Turn your day-old bread and summer cherries into this luscious cherry bread pudding! A soft, rich, custardy base, studded with juicy, jammy cherries and golden crisp edges, so simple and comforting!
Bread and butter pudding is a childhood favorite. It's an easy recipe that’s also very versatile. This cherry bread pudding is old-school comfort at its best. Simple, hearty, and full of nostalgia. It’s the kind of no-fuss dessert that feels like a warm hug from the oven.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
✨A comforting pudding that everyone loves! Buttery, custardy, and full of cherries, what’s not to love!
✨It’s the most delicious way to give stale bread a second life. The custard-soaked bread turns beautifully soft and rich on the inside, with crispy, golden edges on top.
✨It’s great for gatherings and is make-ahead friendly. You can serve it warm straight from the oven, and it’s even better the next day. Just reheat and dig in!
✨A super simple recipe with no technique, this recipe just needs 15 minutes of prep, a bit of waiting time, then bake and eat!
✨Serve it warm with ice cream or eat it cold, straight from the fridge. This yummy bread pudding gets rave reviews, always!
Recipe Ingredients
Bread: Use stale bread as it will soak up the custard like a dream. Enriched breads like brioche or challah are wonderful for this recipe. Sourdough or French bread also works well. But if regular white bread is all you have, use it, as I did for my chocolate chip bread pudding. Just reduce the soaking time to 15 minutes so it doesn’t get too soggy.
Butter adds richness to the pudding and makes the top golden and crunchy!
Milk: I used coconut milk for its subtle sweetness. And because it’s gentle on my lactose-intolerant tummy! But feel free to use any milk you like. Or go for a dairy-free version using almond milk, cashew milk, or oat milk.
Eggs: For that luscious, custardy texture. They also provide structure to the pudding.
Cherries: Fresh or frozen, both work, but I highly recommend using fresh if they’re in season for you.
Vanilla extract gives the cherry bread pudding so much warmth and depth. You can use homemade vanilla extract or store-bought.
Please see the recipe card for full information about ingredients and quantities.
Variations
Bread pudding with cherries is a wonderful blank slate to which you can add pretty much any ingredients and flavors.
- Add some chocolate chips to the mixture or the zest of a lemon. Some cinnamon powder, like I did for my cinnamon bread pudding!
- I finished mine with toasted almonds for texture and crunch. It’s totally optional, but so worth it.
- You can make it with any stale bread you have lying around - sandwich bread, challah, brioche, croissants, or even leftover condensed milk buns.
- Swap cherries for any fruit that’s in season - blueberries, strawberries, peaches, apples. You can also sandwich the bread slices with strawberry jam or homemade cherry jam. Cut into pieces and use in the recipe!
How To Make Cherry Bread Pudding
Lightly grease 6 ramekins or an 8" baking dish.
Step 1: Add the bread cubes and chopped cherries to a large bowl. Mix well.
Step 2: In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract.
Step 3: Pour over the bread. Press the bread down a bit so it absorbs the custard mixture well.
Step 4: Divide the mixture into the 6 ramekins. Let the mixture stand for at least 30 minutes so most of the custard gets soaked.
Step 5: Preheat your oven to 180 °C / 350°F. Place the ramekins on a baking tray. Spoon a teaspoon of the melted butter on top of the bread pudding in each ramekin. Bake for 25- 30 minutes till the pudding looks golden brown on top and the custard is set.
Garnish with toasted almond flakes. Serve warm with a scoop of ice cream. Enjoy!
Pro Tips
- Stale bread means better pudding because it’s dry, and that keeps the pudding from being soggy. I used a loaf that was 1 day old.
- If you're working with fresh bread, cube it and bake in the oven at 150 °C / 300°F for 10-15 minutes. Or leave it out for three to four hours.
- Allow the bread to soak in the egg mixture for at least 30 minutes. This will ensure a soft, gooey texture inside.
- You can use fresh or frozen cherries. If using frozen cherries, thaw them and drain the excess liquid. Don’t skimp on the cherries though! They add so much lovely fruity flavor to the bread pudding.
How To Serve
You can serve the cherry almond bread pudding as is. And some toasted almonds on top or a sprinkle of powdered sugar.
I love serving this cherry bread pudding, warm with a big scoop of vanilla or coffee ice cream. Chocolate ice cream, whipped cream, a drizzle of custard, or caramel sauce—all make the pudding tastier and yummier!
Recipe FAQs
It is bread soaked in a rich, eggy custard and baked to pudding-like perfection. It might have begun as a clever way to use up stale bread. But now? It’s a beloved dessert.
The top and edges should be golden and slightly crisp, while the center is set. Cherry juices should be bubbling. A knife or toothpick inserted in the middle should come out mostly clean with just a few moist crumbs attached, no runny custard.
It’s the British cousin of bread pudding! The idea is the same, but the technique is slightly different. Slices of buttered bread (often with raisins or other dried fruit) are layered in a dish, soaked in custard, and baked.
📖 Recipe
Cherry Bread Pudding
Ingredients
- 10- 12 slices Bread, preferably stale, cut into cubes
- 1 cup Coconut milk You can use any milk of your choice
- 3 Eggs
- 2/3 cup Sugar
- 8 oz Cherries, pitted and halved
- 2 tsp Vanilla extract
- 2 Tbsp Butter, melted
- Almond flakes for topping Optional
Instructions
- Lightly grease 6 ramekins. You can also use an 8" baking dish.
- Combine the bread cubes and cherries in a large bowl.10- 12 slices Bread, preferably stale, cut into cubes, 8 oz (250 g) Cherries, pitted and halved
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract.1 cup (240 g) Coconut milk, 3 Eggs, 2/3 (130 g) cup Sugar, 2 tsp Vanilla extract
- Pour over the bread. Press the bread down a bit so it absorbs the custard mixture well.
- Divide equally amongst the ramekins.
- Let the mixture stand for at least 30 minutes so most of the custard gets soaked.
- Preheat your oven to 180 C / 350 F.
- Spoon a teaspoon of the melted butter on top of the bread pudding in each ramekin.2 Tbsp Butter, melted
- Place the ramekins on a baking tray and bake for 25- 30 minutes till the pudding looks golden brown on top and the custard is set.Garnish with toasted almond flakes. Serve warm as-is or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Stale bread means better pudding because it’s dry, and that keeps the pudding from being soggy. I used a loaf that was 1 day old.
- If you're working with fresh bread, cube it and bake in the oven at 150 °C / 300°F for 10-15 minutes. Or leave it out for three to four hours.
- Allow the bread to soak in the egg mixture for at least 30 minutes. This will ensure a soft, gooey texture inside.
- You can use fresh or frozen cherries. If using frozen cherries, thaw them and drain the excess liquid. Don’t skimp on the cherries though! They add so much lovely fruity flavor to the bread pudding.
Pam Patrek says
Could you use the jarred cherries w the juice?
Natasha Minocha says
Hi Pam, I suppose you could, I haven't tried that though. 🙂
Easyfoodsmith says
Love how you made small individual portions of the bread pudding. The pudding looks stunning and so so tempting 😀
Natasha Minocha says
Thanks so much, Taruna!I made it after ages but going by how the kids pounced on it, there will be more coming up soon! 🙂 cheers