Bread = Life
(amiright?!)
I love bread pudding. I think it comes close to being a perfect dessert. You’ve got a heap of bread, custard (I grew up loving custard pies, vanilla pudding, and basically anything with custard), and insane textural variation: the crispy-toasty bits protect the soft, custardy bread pieces beneath. Plus, it’s an easy way to use up leftover/stale bread. Food waste, begone!
But all of the plant-based recipes for bread pudding that I’ve found use unappetizing thickeners like cornstarch or flaxseed meal (I have nothing against these ingredients, but I try to avoid them in desserts because they don’t add to the intended flavor).
That’s why I’ve long been intrigued by the prospect of making an identical version to the one I know and love, but using vegan swaps. So I pitted the two versions — vegan and traditional egg/dairy — head-to-head.
The main swaps were vegan butter for regular butter, almond milk + full-fat coconut milk for whole milk, and the JUST Egg product for chicken eggs. After tasting them side-by-side, I honestly couldn’t pick a favorite, and they both tasted very, very similar. The JUST Egg made an extremely convincing custard — I was so pleased!
Treat yourself to this I-Can’t-Believe-It’s-Vegan bread pudding and your roommates/housemates/friends/family will thank you!
Plant-Based Bread Pudding
Ingredients
- ¼ C vegan butter (e.g. Miyokos or Earth Balance)
- ¾-1¼ C white, granulated sugar (start with ¾ C and add more to taste)
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- ⅛ tsp salt (JUST Egg is already salted, so we add just a tiny pinch more to enhance the other flavors)
- 1 bottle (12 oz) JUST Egg
- 1 14 oz can full-fat coconut milk
- 1 ½ C plant-based milk (I like using vanilla almond milk)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 6 C day-old or toasted bread, cut or torn into roughly 1" cubes (I prefer sourdough)
- ½-¾ C dried fruit (optional – I like dried blueberries, cranberries, or raisins)
Nutty Topping (optional)
- 1 C raw or toasted pecans, cashews, walnuts, or macadamia nuts, roughly chopped
- ¼ C brown sugar
- ¼ C vegan butter
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add the white and brown sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg, and stir to combine.
- In a saucepan, melt the vegan butter. Pour in the measured plant-based milk, coconut milk, and the bottle of JUST Egg. Heat over medium heat until warm but not boiling. This step prevents the melted butter from re-solidifying when added to the rest of the ingredients.
- Add the vanilla extract to the warm liquid ingredients, then add the liquid mixture to the dry ingredients and whisk until everything is well-combined. Taste the mixture and adjust sugar/spice amounts to your liking.
- Make the nutty topping: in a small saucepan, melt ¼ C vegan butter and stir in the chopped nuts, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Stir it all together and set aside for assembly.
- Preheat your oven to 375° F while you assemble the bread pudding.
- In a large casserole dish, arrange the bread pieces and dried fruit (if using) in an even layer. Pour the liquid mixture over the bread and press bread pieces down so that all are hydrated by the liquid. (It's ok if some are popping out of the liquid – these will become crispy and toasted during baking).
- Sprinkle/spoon the nutty topping evenly over the bread pudding. Bake for 50 minutes, turning your casserole dish halfway through baking. If the pecan pieces start to get too browned, cover with foil.
- Allow the bread pudding to cool for 15 minutes before slicing. Serve warm or cold with coconut whipped cream or ice cream.
