Panettone Bread Pudding
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The perfect way to use any leftover panettone after the holiday’s…Panettone Bread Pudding! A simple to make custard consisting of milk, heavy cream, a splash of vanilla, eggs, and plenty of sugar. Then, poured over panettone and baked to golden perfection. Every bite is sweet, custard-y, and oh so delicious. Whether you’re looking an extra special brunch treat or an easy dessert, this panettone bread pudding is the perfect recipe! Serve with a light dusting of powdered sugar and a dollop of Chantilly Cream (or even a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream!) for a decadent treat that no one will be able to resist.
About The Recipe
It’s the day after Christmas! I hope you all had a wonderful, safe, and relaxing holiday.
This week every year always feels so slow, you know? I don’t know if that’s just me, but it honestly seems like one of the slowest weeks in the year! My mom and I talked about maybe not even posting this week, just to kind of take a breather after a month of posting almost every day.
But, we noticed that we still had some panettone leftover.
So, OF COURSE we had to make a bread pudding with it! They are one of our absolute favorite things to bake, as they work for breakfast OR dessert, are super easy, and typically something everyone will love.
Though, this one might just be better than any we’ve published before (and that’s saying a lot because I absolutely LOVE our Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding recipe)!
The panettone itself is lightly sweet and loaded with fruit. We didn’t want to disguise any of those flavors, just really wanting to highlight it. So, we opted to make a plain vanilla custard to really just let the panettone shine…
And shine it did! As soon as we took the bread pudding out of the oven, it was almost impossible to stay out of it. The way it smells just makes your mouth water!
After shooting, we ALL dug in!
It’s fruity, sweet, full of vanilla, and just melts in your mouth. It really doesn’t need anything else, but it tastes absolutely amazing with a scoop of ice cream or a dollop of Chantilly cream. Just the additional creaminess makes this bread pudding even MORE irresistible!
What is Panettone Bread Pudding?
Okay, before I go talking about panettone, let’s talk about what a bread pudding is. Bread pudding is a popular dessert made from stale bread, milk, eggs, butter, and some sugar (if making a sweet bread pudding, that is! There are some savory bread puddings as well).
It was created as a way to use leftovers! Which is totally awesome, you know? And now there are just SO many variations (helloooo bourbon bread pudding with crème anglaise).
This variation might just be my absolute favorite. Made with our leftover panettone, which is absolutely LOADED with dried fruits and a splash of orange liqueur. Then, we made a standard custard base, but with the addition of vanilla because…let’s be honesst. Vanilla makes everything better!
It’s such a simple and delicious dessert that you’re sure to love.
Reasons You Will Love This Panettone Bread Pudding
- Uses up leftover panettone!!
- Super simple to make.
- Full of flavor and just melts in your mouth.
- Makes for a wonderful dessert or breakfast/brunch!
Equipment Needed
- Sheet Pan
- Mixing Bowl
- Whisk
- Large Casserole
Ingredients
(Full ingredient amounts and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the post)
- Panettone – The most important part of this bread pudding! Since our panettone wasn’t stale, we toasted the cubes to help dry them out. Which, in turn, helps them absorb more of the custard!
- Unsalted Butter – We chose to use unsalted butter for this recipe to help control the amount of salt. If you don’t have unsalted butter, you can use salted. Just remember to omit the salt in the recipe!
- Heavy Cream – Adds a rich creaminess to the custard.
- Whole Milk – Make sure to measure and set the milks out a bit before you’re ready to start baking This mixes better with room temperature ingredients!
- Large Eggs – You will need a LOT of eggs for this recipe. They are what provide the structure and the lift to this bread pudding.
- Vanilla Extract – Simply a must-add to almost all baked goods!
- Granulated Sugar – Adds the perfect amount of sweetness to the custard.
- Salt – To balance out some of the sugar and bring out the flavor!
How To Make Panettone Bread Pudding
Step 1: Toast panettone
Place cubed panettone on prepared sheet pan. Bake until just starting to brown. Set aside to cool.
Step 2: Make the custard
Melt the butter. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together milk, cream, eggs, sugar, salt, vanilla and melted butter.
Step 3: Soak
Place panettone in prepared casserole. Pour milk mixture over top of panettone. Let stand for 30 minutes, making sure to press bread down into milk mixture.
Step 4: Bake
Bake for 90 minutes, or until puffed and set.
Panettone Bread Pudding FAQ’s
Do I have to toast my panettone?
If your panettone is stale/dried out, you actually don’t! We toasted our panettone, as it wasn’t stale yet, but we wanted to make something with the leftovers.
How do I keep my panettone submerged in the custard?
If you’re having problems with the panettone floating, you can get a slightly smaller casserole and set it on top of the bread bread! It sounds silly, but it actually works to hold your bread down in the cusard.
Can I refrigerate this overnight?
We tested this and, while you technically can, it doesn’t work as well. The panettone may become much too soft/disintegrate overnight, as well as you’d have to set the casserole out of the fridge to come back to room temperature the next morning before baking and this casserole already takes a while to bake, but putting it in there cold increases the cook time by 30 or 45 minutes!
Why did my bread pudding sink after baking?
No worries! This is totally normal. In the simplest of terms, the heat and the steam from the oven cause your casserole to rise, but as soon as it starts to cool, the casserole sinks because you’re losing all the heat and steam. It’s nothing to worry about!
Topping Ideas
If you are looking for ways to jazz up this panettone bread pudding, no worries! We’ve got you covered. Here are a few of our favorite toppings.
- Bourbon Crème Anglaise
- Chantilly Cream
- Powdered Sugar
- Maple Syrup
- Chocolate Sauce
- Vanilla Ice Cream
- Eggnog Ice Cream
- Gingerbread Ice Cream
How To Store
If you have leftover bread pudding, you can cover the casserole and keep it in the refrigerator for about 3-4 days. You can also freeze it for up to a month!
Expert Tips
- The ingredients must be at room temperature!
- Be sure to coat the bread ENTIRELY with the custard.
- If you’re having trouble keeping the bread down while trying to soak it, use a slightly smaller casserole to set on top of the bread to weight it down.
- Be careful when baking this casserole! It can be hard to tell when it’s done. When it’s puffed in the middle and you can’t see any more runny custard, that means it’s done.
- You may have to cover this casserole with foil to prevent over-browning.
When you make this Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding, leave a comment down below! We love hearing from you and answering any questions you might have! Also, be sure to tag us on social media and hashtag it #BakersTable.
Panettone Bread Pudding
Ingredients
- 8 cups panettone, cubed
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 2⅔ cups whole milk, room temperature
- 2 cups heavy cream, room temperature
- 9 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 °F.
- Line sheet pan with parchment.
- Spray a 9"x13" casserole with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Place cubed panettone on prepared sheet pan.
- Bake until just starting to brown.
- Set aside to cool.
- Melt butter. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together milk, cream, eggs, sugar, salt, vanilla and melted butter.
- Place panettone in prepared casserole.
- Pour milk mixture over top of panettone.
- Let stand for 30 minutes, making sure to press bread down into milk mixture.
- Bake for 90 minutes, or until puffed and set. (You may need to cover it with foil after 45 minutes.)
Notes
- The ingredients must be at room temperature!
- Be sure to coat the bread ENTIRELY with the custard.
- If you’re having trouble keeping the bread down while trying to soak it, use a slightly smaller casserole to set on top of the bread to weight it down.
- Be careful when baking this casserole! It can be hard to tell when it’s done. When it’s puffed in the middle and you can’t see any more runny custard, that means it’s done.
- You may have to cover this casserole with foil to prevent over-browning.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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