Description
Classic banana bread pudding merges comfort and nostalgia in a luscious dessert from Southern United States. Rich custard and caramelized bananas create a warm, inviting treat you’ll crave after one delectable bite.
Ingredients
Scale
- 4 cups (946 ml) cubed bread (French bread, brioche, or challah)
- 3 large eggs
- 2 ripe bananas, mashed
- 2 cups (473 ml) whole milk
- ½ cup (118 ml) heavy cream
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (50 g) brown sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 tbsps unsalted butter, melted
- 1 banana, sliced
- ¼ cup (30 g) chopped pecans or walnuts
- caramel sauce or powdered sugar (for serving)
Instructions
- Vessel Preparation: Generously butter an 8×8-inch ceramic dish, ensuring complete coverage to prevent adhesion.
- Bread Foundation: Transform day-old bread into uniform cubes, creating an even, single-layer base across the entire baking vessel.
- Custard Composition: Whisk together mashed bananas, whole milk, heavy cream, granulated and brown sugars, eggs, vanilla extract, ground cinnamon, nutmeg, and sea salt until achieving a seamless, velvety consistency.
- Saturation and Layering: Pour the silky custard over bread cubes, applying gentle pressure to guarantee thorough absorption, allowing the mixture to marinate for 10 minutes.
- Butter Embellishment: Drizzle melted unsalted butter across the surface, creating a golden, flavor-enhancing top layer.
- Thermal Transformation: Bake in a preheated 350°F oven for 40-45 minutes, watching for a golden-brown surface with a subtle central jiggle.
- Resting and Garnishing: Allow pudding to rest briefly, then adorn with banana medallions and toasted pecan fragments for textural complexity.
- Serving Suggestion: Present warm, accompanied by caramel sauce or a delicate powdered sugar dusting, transforming each serving into a decadent experience.
Notes
- Bread Selection Strategy: Use slightly stale or day-old bread for optimal absorption and texture, ensuring the pudding maintains a rich, custardy consistency without becoming soggy.
- Banana Ripeness Tip: Select overripe bananas with dark spots for maximum natural sweetness and deeper flavor profile, enhancing the overall dessert’s complexity.
- Moisture Control Technique: Press bread cubes gently into custard mixture, allowing complete liquid absorption without creating a dense, waterlogged texture; let mixture rest 10 minutes before baking for best results.
- Dietary Modification Option: Swap whole milk with almond or oat milk for lactose-free version; replace eggs with mashed banana or commercial egg replacer to create a vegan-friendly variation that maintains similar richness and binding properties.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Desserts, Breakfast
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 9
- Calories: 320
- Sugar: 22 g
- Sodium: 200 mg
- Fat: 14 g
- Saturated Fat: 8 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 5 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 42 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 7 g
- Cholesterol: 100 mg