Blueberry Bread Pudding

One of our top-rated desserts, this blueberry bread pudding recipe ticks so many boxes. It’s a tasty fruit dessert, yet you can make it year-round with fresh or frozen blueberries. The white chocolate makes it a decadent treat. And it uses up leftover bread—bread pudding is best with stale bread cubes.

Best of all, it’s one of those 13×9-inch recipes that are easy to whip together and ideal for sharing. Bring a tray to a church potluck, serve at room temperature with plastic spoons for a picnic or serve fresh from the oven after dinner. You can even eat it straight from the fridge for a midnight snack.

Ingredients for Blueberry Bread Pudding

Pudding

• Heavy whipping cream: This bread pudding is titled “over-the-top” for a reason: the bread cubes soak in heavy cream for a flavorful, decadent dessert. (See the variations section below for a lighter version.)
• Eggs: Eggs enrich the cream and make a custard-like blueberry pudding bread.
• Sugar: We use plain granulated sugar here since it pairs better with the white baking chips than brown sugar would.
• Vanilla extract: A dash of vanilla draws out the sweetness of the berries.
• Blueberries: Fresh blueberries show off the complex flavor of this sweet and slightly sour berry. You can also use frozen berries. If you do, use them without thawing to avoid discoloring the batter.
• White baking chips: Sweet, mild white chocolate chips let the blueberry flavor shine. You can reduce the quantity of chips for a less-sweet pudding.
• French bread: Cut a loaf of French bread into cubes. Remove the crusts if they’re especially hard or if you want a very smooth pudding. It’s best to use stale bread; the dry crumb will absorb more cream.

Sauce

• White baking chips: These chips melt easily, making a creamy, sweet sauce.
• Heavy whipping cream: More whipping cream thins the melted chips and makes the sauce pourable.

Directions

Step 1: Prep the batter

Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, stir or whisk together the eggs, cream, sugar and vanilla until a smooth batter forms. Stir in the blueberries and baking chips.

Step 2: Add the bread

Gently stir in the bread cubes. Let the mixture stand until the bread softens, about 15 minutes.

Step 3: Bake

Transfer to a greased 13×9-inch baking dish. Bake, uncovered, until a knife inserted in the center of the pudding comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. Let stand for five minutes before serving.

Step 4: Make the sauce

For the sauce, place the baking chips in a small heatproof bowl. In a small saucepan, bring the cream just to a boil. Remove from heat immediately and pour over the baking chips. Whisk until smooth. Pour the sauce over the blueberry bread pudding, drizzling into an abstract pattern. Serve the bread pudding warm.

Editor’s Tip: Be careful not to overcook the cream, which can make it curdle.

Recipe Variations

• Experiment with the bread: Plain white bread tastes great here. Think French bread, baguettes or even sandwich bread. You can also get fancy with chopped croissants or biscuits. Use gluten-free bread to accommodate any dietary restrictions. If you’re using a heavier bread, like a peasant loaf, remove the thick crusts before cubing the bread, and allow the pudding to soak overnight before baking.
  
• Change up the mix-ins: Most berries taste delicious with white chocolate. Try raspberries, sliced strawberries, blackberries or a variety. Or, go wild with chopped apples, walnuts and raisins or sliced bananas and chocolate chips. You can’t really go wrong with bread pudding recipes!
• Add nuts: Scatter chopped walnuts, pecans or slivered almonds over the top of the pudding for some crunch.
• Add a dash of spice: A shake of cinnamon would make for an extra cozy bread pudding.
• Serve with a different sauce: Lots of dessert sauces would be tasty here. Salted caramel would add another flavor, while bright lemon curd would complement the blueberries.
• Lighten it up: The cream in this recipe is very rich. You may substitute half-and-half, or use half cream and half milk (whole, 2% or skim).

How to Store Blueberry Bread Pudding

Bread pudding is especially delicious when it’s warm and fresh from the oven, but leftovers keep fairly well. Let the pudding cool, then cover the pan with plastic wrap or foil, or transfer the pudding to an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator.

How long does blueberry bread pudding last?

Leftover blueberry bread pudding will keep well for up to five days.

How do you reheat blueberry bread pudding?

Reheat leftovers in the microwave or oven. Bread pudding is also tasty when enjoyed cold from the fridge.

Blueberry Bread Pudding Tips

How do you know when blueberry bread pudding is done?

Though it’s called pudding, bread pudding falls closer to cake in texture. The bread soaks up all the rich custard-y batter, puffing up and becoming chewy, airy and moist. You definitely don’t want to overcook the bread pudding, which can make it dry, but undercooked bread pudding would be soggy. The best way to test is by inserting the tip of a knife into the very center of the pan. Remove the pudding from the oven as soon as the knife tip comes out clean.

How do I fix dry bread pudding?

If you did overcook the bread pudding, no worries: You’ll remember to check earlier next time! To save a slightly dry bread pudding, simply serve with sauce or a side of ice cream (or both). You can even pour heavy cream directly over the pudding for a rich, very moist serving.

What can you serve with blueberry bread pudding?

Since this bread pudding includes a sweet sauce, you really don’t need any extras. That said, nobody would complain about a dollop of whipped cream or ice cream (vanilla is a natural choice, but also consider salted caramel or lemon ice cream). Or, go for a scoop of yogurt if you’re enjoying dessert for breakfast.