Apple Rum Raisin Bread Pudding
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Settle in for a comforting treat with my apple rum raisin bread pudding, featuring tart apples, rum-soaked raisins, and a vanilla-cinnamon custard baked into soft challah—just right for a chilly autumn night.
This twist on classic bread pudding is the ultimate cozy dessert for a chilly autumn night. Made with challah bread, a vanilla and cinnamon-scented custard, tart apples, and plump rum-soaked raisins, it’s the perfect balance of sweet, boozy, and tart. Serve it warm from the oven with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top for a comforting and satisfying treat.
If you’re a fan of the apple and raisin combo, you may also enjoy either this Amish-style baked oatmeal or morning glory baked oatmeal — both are a comforting and filling way to start your day, or my apple strudel which is perfect with a cup of coffee or tea.
Table of Contents
“The best bread pudding we have ever had! Dish cleaned out. Not a crumb left.”
What You’ll Need To Make Apple Rum Raisin Bread Pudding
- Raisins: Infuse the pudding with bursts of sweetness and chewy texture.
- Rum: Imparts a warm and complex layer of flavor to the pudding. Either dark or spiced rum works nicely.
- Eggs: Bind the pudding together, providing structure and richness.
- Whole Milk: Creates a creamy base for the pudding, ensuring a moist and tender texture.
- Sugar: Sweetens the pudding, balancing the flavors and enhancing its overall richness.
- Butter: Adds richness and moisture to the pudding, contributing to its indulgent texture.
- Cinnamon: Provides a warm and aromatic element that complements the sweetness of the pudding.
- Vanilla: Enhances the overall flavor profile of the pudding with its sweet notes.
- Challah or Brioche Cubes: Serve as the base of the pudding, soaking up the custard mixture and providing a soft and fluffy texture.
- Apple: Adds a fruity and slightly tangy flavor to the pudding. I recommend a large tart baking apple (such as Granny Smith).
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Spray a 2-quart baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Place the raisins and rum in a shallow bowl and microwave on high for 30 seconds. Let the raisins soak in the rum while you prepare the other ingredients.
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs. Add the milk, sugar, melted butter, cinnamon, salt, and vanilla.
Whisk until evenly combined.
Add the challah cubes, sliced apples and raisins/rum mixture.
Stir to combine.
Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish, making sure the apples and raisins are evenly distributed. Let stand for at least 1 hour or refrigerate overnight.
Bake until the top is golden and puffy and the center is set, 55 to 60 minutes. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sure! The bread pudding can be assembled and refrigerated overnight. It can go straight from the fridge to the oven when you’re ready to serve it. (Because it will be cold, it may take an extra minute or two in the oven.)
Yep, it’s perfectly fine to freeze bread pudding for up to 3 months. After baking it and completely cooling, double-wrap the bread pudding securely with aluminum foil or plastic freezer wrap. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Before serving, reheat in a 300°F-oven until warmed through.
Enriched breads like challah and brioche are the best breads to use for bread pudding, but if you have a loaf of French or Italian bread, they’ll work too. Just avoid using sourdough because its tangy flavor doesn’t go well with the sweet custard. The bread can be fresh or slightly stale; actually day-old bread is perfect for this dessert, as it will more readily soak up the custard mixture.
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Apple Rum Raisin Bread Pudding
Settle in for a comforting treat with my apple rum raisin bread pudding, featuring tart apples, rum-soaked raisins, and a vanilla-cinnamon custard baked into soft challah—just right for a chilly autumn night.
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup raisins
- 2 tablespoons dark or spiced rum
- 4 large eggs
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- 4 cups packed challah or brioche cubes, from one loaf with crust removed (you won't use entire loaf)
- 1 large tart baking apple, such as Granny Smith, peeled, cored, cut into ⅛-inch slices and then cut in half
Vanilla ice cream, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Spray a 2-quart baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- Place the raisins and rum in a shallow bowl and microwave on high for 30 seconds. Let the raisins soak in the rum while you prepare the other ingredients.
- In a large bowl, whisk the eggs. Add the milk, sugar, melted butter, cinnamon, salt, and vanilla and whisk until evenly combined. Add the challah cubes, sliced apples and raisins/rum mixture and stir to combine. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish, making sure the apples and raisins are evenly distributed. Let stand for at least 1 hour or refrigerate overnight.
- Bake until the top is golden and puffy and the center is set, 55 to 60 minutes. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.
- Note: The nutritional information does not include the ice cream
- Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The bread pudding can be assembled and refrigerated for a few hours and up to overnight. It can also be frozen for up to 3 months. After it is completely cooled, double-wrap it securely with aluminum foil or plastic freezer wrap or in a freezer-safe container. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Before serving, reheat in the oven until warm.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (8 servings)
- Calories: 354
- Fat: 11 g
- Saturated fat: 5 g
- Carbohydrates: 56 g
- Sugar: 39 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 8 g
- Sodium: 253 mg
- Cholesterol: 126 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Comments
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I’m wondering if I could divide the pudding into individual casserole dishes, refrigerate overnight then bake. I’m looking to freeze and share these. Or am I better off making one, cooling, cutting into individual portions and freeze? Thanks for your help.
Hi Mary, I really think you can go either way, so if you’d like to put them into individual casserole dishes, that should work.
I made this with leftover sandwich bread trimmings and heels, lesser sugar, gala apples, raisin and without rum but still it came out tasty. This is my first time making bread pudding in an effort to save old bread. I also doubled the recipe fitting a 9×13 pan. I will definitely make this again and will try it with rum – soaked raisin and granny smith apples. Thanks Jenn for sharing your amazing recipes!
Hi Jen,
I am a huge fan of yours and I always loved your recipes. Unfortunately, this one did not work. The bread pudding was hard and dry. What do you think happened? Is it because I added too much bread?
Also, what size pan should for a 2 quart pan?
Help. I like the ingredients of this recipe but I don’t know what went wrong.
Hi Lucy, I’m sorry this came out dry for you! For a recipe that requires a 2-quart baking dish, I typically use an 8-inch square pan. What size pan did you use? Is there a possibility you added too much bread? Was your baking dish in the center of the oven?
I used a 9 inch square pan but I used almost the whole loaf of challah bread. Maybe that was the problem. Will try again. Is there a way to salvage the dry bread pudding bread?
Hi Lucy, that explains why it was dry. There’s nothing you can do to the bread pudding itself, but I’d suggest serving it with ice cream (if you haven’t already) and you could also drizzle it with caramel sauce. Hope that helps!
Hi! Love your recipes, thank you for sharing. If I made this with raisin challah when would I add the rum and how much? Thanks!
Hi Kat, so glad you like the recipes! I’d add the rum to the milk/egg mixture. Enjoy!
Hi!! Is there a substitution you would recommend in place of the rum? Is it okay to leave out the raisins? Thanks so much!
Hi Samantha, If you’d prefer something without the rum and the raisins, I’d suggest this recipe. And if you’d like to add apple to it, I’d suggest 1, diced. Hope you enjoy if you make it!
It’s that time of the year
could I use egg nog
Sure, Carol. I think that’d be delicious!
Hi, Jenn!
Do you think this would work with heavy whipping cream instead of milk? Or 1 cup milk and 1 cup whipping cream?
Yes either way 🙂
Hi Jen
What is “packed” challah? I cubed raisin bread but did not squish it down when measuring 4 cups, is that ok?
Thanks !
Hi Tan, I’d squish it down a little so that you have enough of the bread portion.
Hi Jen,
May I ask if this recipe can be made ahead of time?
For example, in the morning (or even the night before), I prepare everything and leave it in the fridge. Then only pop it in the oven just when dinner service starts? Something similar to your breakfast cheddar-sausage bread pudding recipe? Thank you!! (big fan!)
Hi Patrick, that would be perfectly fine to do. I hope you enjoy it!
I made this recipe for Christmas and it was a success. Not too sweet. I did a half cup white sugar and half cup brown sugar. This recipe will be a staple for me.