Pumpkin Maple Bread Pudding with Toasted Pecan Crumb Topping
Bread pudding with a delightfully fall flair, made with pumpkin, raisins, maple syrup and toasted pecans crumb topping.
Servings 8Servings
Prep Time 20 minutesmins
Cook Time 55 minutesmins
Soaking Time 20 minutesmins
Equipment
1 9x13 inch baking dish or a 2 1/2 quart casserole dish
Ingredients
Pumpkin Maple Bread Pudding
8cupsbread, in large cubes (approximately 10 oz. of bread)brioche, french bread, Italian bread, challah, or thick-sliced Texas toast style bread
115-oz. can of puréed pumpkin
4largeeggs
2cupsmilk
1/2cuppure maple syrup plus more for drizzling on top of baked bread pudding - see below
1tsp. vanilla extract
1tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1/2tsp.cinnamon
1/2tsp. salt
1/2cup raisins (reconstituted in boiling water for about 15 minutes)
1/2cuppure maple syrup or caramel saucefor drizzling on top of bread pudding
Toasted Pecan Crumb Topping
3/4 cuplight brown sugar
1cupall-purpose flour
1tsp. cinnamon
1/2tsp.pumpkin pie spice
1/4tsp. salt
3/4cupcoarsely chopped toasted pecans
4oz.butter, chilled and cut into small pieces1 stick or 1/2 cup
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish or a 2 1/2 quart casserole dish.
Cut bread into large bite-sized pieces and set aside.
Add pumpkin puree, eggs, milk, maple syrup, vanilla extract, spices, salt and blend well with a wire whisk. Stir in raisins. Set aside, or refrigerate until ready to bake the bread pudding. This step can be done the night before.
When ready to bake the bread pudding, soak the bread in the egg mixture for about 15 minutes. Push bread pieces down into the mixture with a spoon, to be sure all of the bread is covered.
Pour bread pudding mixture into the prepared pan. Distribute the toasted pecan crumb topping evenly over the top. Bake for about 50-60 minutes or until a thermometer inserted into the center reads 160° F. You can also test with a metal knife inserted to be sure it comes out clean.
Toasted Pecan Crumb Topping
Mix brown sugar, flour, spices, salt and chopped pecans in a small mixing bowl to blend.
Add butter, and cut into dries with a pastry cutter, or cold, dry finger tips, until the mixture is crumbly and the butter is reduced to the size of small peas. Set aside until ready to use. You can also prepare this well ahead of time, and store it in the refrigerator or freezer until ready to use.
Notes
You can use brown or blond raisins in this recipe, or no raisins at all if you like. You can omit the pecans if you prefer to have your bread pudding without nuts. We love pecans in almost anything, which is why we always include them:) It’s easy to customize just how you want the bread pudding to turn out, once you have the bread and the custard mixture ready. Just be sure to allow 15-20 minutes or so before baking (while you are preheating the oven) to allow the bread to sit in the egg mixture to soak it up. This is what makes bread pudding so nice and soft on the inside, while still being a wee bit crunchy on the outside. Once you bake your bread pudding, you can freeze it for up to two months or so. Be sure to allow it to cool completely, and then wrap it in an airtight container before freezing it. Be sure to hold off on any toppings, like syrup or caramel sauce, until you are actually ready to serve it.
Cover it with foil and reheat in a 350 F. oven until heated through.