Pumpkin Bread Pudding

Recipe Ingredients

• Sugar- The sugar is only needed to make the caramel for the pudding. You can leave it out if you like.
• Milks- We use a combination of evaporated milk and condensed milk instead of using just whole milk. This is because these milks will add a distinct flavor to the dessert. Plus, the condensed milk is responsible for the sweetness of the recipe.
• Pumpkin puree- I used canned pumpkin, but you can make your own fresh pumpkin puree. Just make sure that the pumpkin is well drained.
• Raisins & brandy- Some people like adding raisins and others don’t. I like to add them, but first soak them in brandy or rum to add more flavor. If you like, you can leave the brandy or rum out.
• Eggs- The eggs in a bread pudding are responsible for the binding of the bread with all the other ingredients in the recipe. I used only 2 eggs because I don’t like the bread pudding to have a strong eggy flavor or smell.
• Butter- The butter adds flavor to the recipe. I use salted butter.
• Spice mix- You can always make your own favorite fall spice mix. But what I like to use is cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and a little bit of vanilla extract.
• Stale bread- I like using a Puerto Rican sweet bread, but any stale bread is good.

How to Make A Pumpkin Bread Pudding

• Photo 1: First, we add the brandy to the raisins. We do this so the raisins have time to rehydrate and plump up before adding them to the custard. Let them sit until we mix everything.
• Photo 2: Cut your bread into small pieces. You can get clean cuts by using a knife or a more rustic feel by cutting the bread by hand. Add the bread to a big bowl.

• Photo 3: Make the custard. In a big bowl, add the condensed milk and pumpkin puree. I like doing this first because the condensed milk is harder to mix with the rest of the ingredients because it is thicker. Then add the evaporated milk, eggs, vanilla extract, and spice mix. Mix until everything is well combined.
• Photo 4: Add about half of the liquid mixture to half of the bread. Mix until you see no white of the bread. Add the other half of the bread and the rest of the liquid. Mix everything until all the bread is completely covered in the custard.

• Photo 5: Make the caramel. In a small pan over high heat, add the sugar. After about the first minute, start stirring, and you will have almost no sugar lumps left. By this time, turn off the heat and keep stirring. The residual heat will melt that sugar.
• Photo 6: Add the caramel to your mold. Carefully move the mold around so the caramel can cover the whole bottom of the pan and a little bit of the sides.

• Photo 7: Preheat your oven to 350F. Add the raisins to the bread mixture, including the liquid that the raisins were in. Mix and add the mixture to your mold.
• Photo 8: Put your mold in a bigger pan or mold so we can make a water bath. The water should cover at least half of the mold. Bake your bread pudding for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

• Photo 9: Test the pudding for doneness by inserting a knife or toothpick in the middle of the bread pudding. It should come out clean if it is completely done. Then remove from the water bath so it can cool at room temperature.
• Photo 10: Use a knife to run it around the border of your mold to release the pudding. Get a serving plate bigger than your mold. Place it on top of your mold and flip. The bread pudding should easily come off.