This cranberry bread pudding recipe is one of our favorite Christmas dessert recipes. A traditional bread pudding recipe is reinvented with cranberries and a delicious vanilla sauce.
After a big holiday dinner, bread pudding is the perfect dessert! If I am serving a big crowd, I love serving it alongside a homemade pumpkin pie or an easy cranberry trifle.
What Is Bread Pudding
Bread pudding, is a sweet dessert made from dried bread cubes and a creamy sweet custard sauce. The bread soaks up the cream and then the whole thing is baked until golden. Top it with the easy vanilla sauce for the perfect dessert!
In this version I add a hint of lemon and fresh tart cranberries along with sweet dried cranberries. You can certainly substitute raisins if you prefer. I love serving homemade cranberry bread pudding during the holidays, but it really is perfect any time of year.
How To Make Cranberry Bread Pudding
Bread pudding doesn’t take too much legwork, which is why it is so perfect to finish off a holiday dinner. You can even make it in advance and throw it in the oven once everyone sits down to eat!
To make bread pudding, begin with drying the bread cubes out. I like to do this on the counter a few days before I am preparing it to ensure they are properly dried out. In a pinch, stick them in the oven at it’s lowest setting until they are crusty but not toasted!
Next, mix all of the wet ingredients and toss them with the bread cubes. In this cranberry bread pudding recipe, I use a mixture of fresh and dried cranberries. Fresh cranberries will be nice and tart, while the dried ones will be on the sweeter side. It is like a flavor explosion!
The splash of citrus from the lemon zest really brings the vanilla and cranberry flavors together nicely!
While the bread pudding bakes, you have the perfect time to make the vanilla sauce. Once the bread pudding is set and baked, drizzle it and serve it warm! Your guests will thank you.
More Sweet Holiday Recipes You’ll Love
- Peppermint Mocha Latte
- Snowball Cookies
- Salted Caramel Banana Cream Pie
- Crustless Pumpkin Pie
- Spritz Cookies
Cranberry Bread Pudding
Ingredients
- 4 eggs beaten
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ cup butter melted
- 3 cups milk
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream
- 12 slices sandwich bread cubed and dried
- 2 cups fresh cranberries
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest optional
Vanilla Sauce
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 ¼ cups milk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Whisk together eggs, white and brown sugar, butter, milk, cream and lemon zest.
- Gently toss bread cubes, fresh and dried cranberries with the egg mixture. Allow to sit about 10 minutes stirring occasionally.
- Spread into a greased 9x13 pan and bake 30 minutes. Cover and bake additional 20-25 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
Vanilla Sauce
- Whisk all sauce ingredients together.
- Place on the stove and whisk over medium heat until boiling.
- Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
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Vanilla Sauce Adapted from Allrecipes.com
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