Banana Bread Pudding Recipe
When I visited my grandmother in summer, I always looked forward to the comforting pudding she'd make. With its crusty golden top, custard-like inside and smooth vanilla sauce, this bread pudding is a real homespun dessert. Now I make it for my grandchildren.
When I visited my grandmother in summer, I always looked forward to the comforting pudding she'd make. With its crusty golden top, custard-like inside and smooth vanilla sauce, this bread pudding is a real homespun dessert. Now I make it for my grandchildren.
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 2 cups milk
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1/4 cup butter melted
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1/4 cup light corn syrup
- 4 cups french bread cubed
- 1 cup firm bananas sliced
- Carbohydrate 98.6247108333333 g
- Cholesterol 152.551666666667 mg
- Fat 21.4950603333333 g
- Fiber 3.10718339633942 g
- Protein 18.4599836666667 g
- Saturated Fat 11.9240448333333 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (316g)
- Sodium 1005.12646666667 mg
- Sugar 95.5175274369939 g
- Trans Fat 2.0423367 g
- Calories 655 calories
Step-by-step
- Place the bread cubes in a greased 2-qt. casserole; pour butter over and toss to coat. In a medium bowl, lightly beat eggs; add milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Stir in bananas.
- Pour over bread cubes and stir to coat. Bake, uncovered, at 375° for 40 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean.
- Meanwhile, for sauce, melt butter in a small saucepan. Combine sugar and cornstarch; add to butter. Stir in milk and corn syrup. Cook and stir over medium heat until the mixture comes to a full boil. Boil for 1 minute. Remove from the heat; stir in the vanilla. Serve warm sauce over warm pudding. Yield: 6 servings.
Using fresh, soft bread instead of day-old loaves remains the most common error in baked custards, resulting in a dense, water-logged texture rather than a cohesive crumb. Stale or slightly dried bread possesses lower moisture content, allowing the starch matrix to absorb the dairy-egg mixture without disintegrating into mush during the 40-minute bake at 375°F. Tossing the cubed French bread in melted butter before adding the liquid creates a hydrophobic barrier, protecting the outer perimeter from over-softening while the interior sets.
Starch Hydration and Egg Coagulation
Eggs require precise thermal thresholds to solidify without curdling. When heated in the oven, egg proteins denature and cross-link around 158°F to 170°F, trapping the milk and sugar inside a semi-solid gel. Firm bananas contribute natural sucrose and moisture, releasing starches that soften further as ambient heat penetrates the 2-quart casserole. Monitoring the bake requires inserting a knife near the center; a clean extraction confirms that the thermal energy has successfully coagulated the albumen.
The Science of the Vanilla Sauce
Cornstarch requires a full boil to achieve complete gelatinization, which is why the accompanying sauce must reach 212°F and bubble for precisely one minute. Whisking the cornstarch with dry sugar prior to introducing liquids prevents clumping by separating the starch granules uniformly. Incorporating the vanilla extract strictly after removing the saucepan from the heat source protects volatile aromatic compounds from degrading under direct thermal exposure.
