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    Home » Desserts

    Vegan Bread Pudding with Butterscotch Sauce

    Published: Mar 20, 2022 by Bonnie · Modified: Nov 18, 2023 · This post may contain affiliate links.

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    This decadent vegan bread pudding is topped with a homemade butterscotch sauce that melts in your mouth! It has a slight crispness on the top but is so soft and gooey on the inside. It’s easy to make with just a few ingredients, very comforting, and perfect for sharing with others!

    Vegan bread pudding.
    cropped-bread-pudding-next-to-sauce.jpg

    Don’t throw your old bread away, use it to make scrumptious, pillowy bread pudding! And if you have lots of leftover stale bread, you can also make this Vegan French Toast!

    This is one of those no waste, feel-good desserts that only needs a few simple ingredients and is so easy to make.

    Bread Pudding has been around for a very long time. I think it’s so magical how it’s a way of turning bread that is old, hard, and dry into a creamy, delicious dessert. 

    Speaking of no-waste, you can dip the rest of the bread loaf in soup such as this Vegan Gnocchi Soup or this Sopa de Fideo.

    A slice of vegan bread pudding.

    You Will Love This Bread Pudding Because…

    I can’t wait for you to try this ridiculously delicious, eggless, dairy-free recipe!

    Fair warning… You might want to share this because it’s too easy to get carried away by serving yourself seconds or thirds!

    This bread pudding is soft and gooey on the inside with a little bit of crispness on the top. It’s so good that it can be eaten warm, at room temperature, or even cold! I also like to enjoy it during breakfast or brunch.

    The homemade butterscotch sauce goes so well with the bread pudding, which isn’t as sweet. The sauce is perfect for drizzling because of its thin consistency. You’ll find that all of its glorious deliciousness melts in your mouth with every bite. Here's a thicker Butterscotch Sauce recipe that you'll love for other desserts like over vegan ice cream or dipping fruit into!

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    Ingredient Notes and Substitutions

    Image of labeled bread pudding ingredients.

    Bread Pudding Ingredients

    • Bread - You want day-old bread that’s dry and hard. I prefer to use a solid loaf instead of the pre-sliced bread so that I can cut thick slices. Any type of bread works as long as it’s vegan. Italian, French, Challah, cinnamon raisin, and brioche are all good choices. Dry bread soaks up the liquid better than fresh bread. I have steps down below for how to dry it out if yours isn't already.
    • Sugar - Use a vegan/organic cane sugar. Other sugars such as brown, turbinado, or coconut would work, but I find cane sugar to produce the best flavor here. 
    • Flaxseeds - Ground flaxseeds, also known as flaxseed meal serve as an egg replacer. It not only thickens the pudding mixture, but flaxseeds also provide nutritional benefits such as omega-3 fatty acids and fiber.
    • Plant Milk - Any plant-based milk will work such as oat, almond, soy, etc. It’s okay if your plant-based milk is already sweetened or flavored with vanilla. You can decide if you want to use less sugar and vanilla if they are.
    • Vegan Butter - Any plant-based butter brand will work here, but make sure it’s salted. The salt enhances the flavors in a wonderful way. If your butter happens to be unsalted, simply add ⅛ teaspoon of salt to the pudding mixture.
    • Nuts - Chopped pecans or any nut of your choice are absolutely optional, although they add a lovely crunch to the top of the bread pudding. Walnuts or almonds would be a great as well. 
    Pouring butterscotch on bread pudding.

    Butterscotch Sauce Ingredients

    • Vegan Butter - Just like the butter in the bread pudding, we also want the sauce’s butter to be salted. If not, add ¼ teaspoon of salt to the saucepan.
    • Brown Sugar - I use light brown sugar to sweeten the sauce. Dark brown works too, but will have a deeper, rustic flavor to it. The sauce is considered butterscotch because of the brown sugar, but you can use cane sugar to create caramel sauce instead. Either one is just as delicious!
    • Plant Milk - Any plant milk works.
    • Vanilla Extract - Pure vanilla extract adds a touch of amazing flavor to the sauce. I like to add mine at the beginning of the cooking process to produce a subtle hint of vanilla flavoring. Although, you can wait until you remove the pan from the heat to add it for a stronger aroma. 
    Bread pudding without dairy.

    How to Make Vegan Bread Pudding

    Here are some quick visual steps. Find the full recipe with exact measurements on the recipe card below.

    Bread Pudding Step-by-Step Instructions

    • If your bread is not hard, slice it and dry it out in the oven for about 10-15 minutes at 250°F on a baking sheet. Or you can slice it and leave it on the counter for a few hours. Dry bread soaks up the liquid better than fresh bread.
    • Mix the cane sugar, flaxseed meal, and cinnamon in a large bowl.
    • Then, warm the plant milk and vegan butter in the microwave for 1-2 minutes. Stir this until the butter has melted.
    • Pour this warm creamy mixture into the bowl along with the vanilla. Whisk them together and set the bowl aside for 5 minutes. This will give the flaxseed meal time to absorb the liquid and thicken.
    Bread pudding wet ingredients in a large bowl.
    • Grease a large casserole or oven-safe dish. Cut half of the loaf into 6 thick slices and then cube them. This should be about 6 cups.
    • Make sure to include the crust because it'll create such a tasty bite. Add the bread to the casserole dish. Spread it out in an even layer.
    Cubed day-old bread on a cutting board.
    • Give the pudding mixture a good stir and then pour it over the bread. Press all of the bread pieces down into the liquid.
    • Place a piece of foil on the bottom rack of your oven in case the bread pudding bubbles over. Preheat the oven and then let the bread soak up the liquid for 10 minutes while the oven heats.
    • Sprinkle the chopped nuts on top and bake the bread pudding for about 45-55 minutes.
    • It is done when it has a golden brown color on top and the center doesn’t have a pool of liquid anymore. The sides will also be pulling away from the edge a bit.
    Baked bread pudding over a white napkin.

    Make The Vegan Butterscotch

    • Make the butterscotch sauce while the bread pudding is in the oven. Start by melting the vegan butter in a small pan over medium heat.
    • Then, add the brown sugar, plant milk, and vanilla. Stir this occasionally as it cooks down.
    • The sauce will start to foam and bubble. Turn the heat down to medium-low and continue to stir occasionally as it simmers. Once thick, remove it from the heat and let it cool.
    • Drizzle the sauce over the bread pudding when it comes out of the oven. You can either eat this dessert warm or let it cool down before you do. It will set as it cools.
    Bread pudding served onto a plate.
    Bread pudding with sauce.

    Variation Ideas

    • Use different types of bread such as French, Challah, cinnamon raisin, etc. 
    • Add chocolate chips, raisins, or dried cranberries to the bread pudding.
    • Mix-in fresh fruit like blueberries or peeled apples.
    • Top it with fruit, powdered sugar, vegan ice cream, or whipped topping.

    Make Ahead

    • Option 1: Cover and place the casserole dish with the soaking bread in the refrigerator overnight. The next day, let it come to room temperature for about 20 minutes and then bake it in the oven as noted in the recipe card.
    • Option 2: Fully bake the bread pudding and drizzle the butterscotch sauce over the top. Let it cool down completely before storing it in the refrigerator (covered). Reheat it by warming it in the oven at 325° for 20 minutes.

    Storage

    Store leftover bread pudding in a covered dish in the refrigerator for 4 days or the freezer for 3 months. If frozen, let it thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Reheat the bread pudding in the oven or microwave until it's heated through.

    Related Vegan Recipes

    • Butterscotch Sauce
    • Blackberry Lemon Scones
    • Homemade Cherry Pie
    • Apple Galette
    • Pear Crumble
    • Tiramisu

    I hope you love this recipe! Please consider leaving a star rating and comment below. You can get my latest recipes sent directly to your inbox. Click here to subscribe to my email list!

    Pinterest pin of vegan bread pudding.
    Bread Pudding Pinterest Pin with sauce drizzling in top picture and single serve slice on bottom picture.
    Pinterest pin of vegan bread pudding.
    Up close view of bread pudding.

    Vegan Bread Pudding with Butterscotch Sauce

    Decadent Vegan Bread Pudding is topped with a simple butterscotch sauce that melts in your mouth! This tasty dessert has a slight crispness on the top but is so soft and gooey on the inside. So easy to make with just a few ingredients and perfect for sharing with others!
    5 from 5 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert
    Cuisine: English
    Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 45 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes
    Servings: 8
    Calories: 374kcal

    Ingredients

    Bread Pudding

    • 6 cups dry, hard bread (about 6 thick slices)
    • ⅔ cup cane sugar
    • ¼ cup flaxseed meal
    • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
    • 3 cups plant milk
    • ¼ cup vegan butter, salted
    • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
    • ¼ cup pecans, chopped

    Butterscotch Sauce

    • ¼ cup vegan butter, salted
    • ⅓ cup light brown sugar, packed
    • ¼ cup plant milk,
    • ½ tablespoon vanilla extract

    Instructions

    For the Bread Pudding

    • Whisk together the cane sugar, flaxseed meal, and cinnamon in a large bowl.
    • Warm the vegan butter and plant milk up together in the microwave for 1-2 minutes. Stir them until the butter has fully melted.
    • Pour the butter/milk mixture and vanilla into the large bowl that has the cane sugar mixture. Stir this together and set it aside for 5 minutes to give the flaxseed time to thicken.
    • Grease a large (2.5 quart, 9x13, etc.) casserole or oven-safe dish. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
    • Cut half of the loaf of day-old bread into slices and then cubes about 1 inch in size. Aim for 6 cups of cubed bread. Add them to the casserole dish in a single layer.
    • Give the flax pudding mixture a good stir and pour it over the bread cubes. Press all of the bread down into the liquid. Set it aside for 10 minutes so that the bread can absorb the liquid.
    • Top the bread pudding with chopped pecans (optional) and bake it for 45-55 minutes. The bread pudding is done when the top has pulled away from the edges and there isn’t a pool of liquid in the center of the dish.

    For the Butterscotch Sauce

    • Make the sauce while the bread pudding bakes. Melt the vegan butter in a small pan over medium heat. Add the brown sugar, plant milk, and vanilla.
    • Stir occasionally as it cooks down for 5 minutes. The sauce will bubble and foam up. Turn the heat down to medium-low and let the sauce simmer for about 15 minutes. Stir occasionally.
    • Remove the pan from the heat once the sauce has thickened. It will have some bubbles at first, but they will settle after a few minutes. Let it cool for 3-5 minutes because it will be hot! Pour the sauce over the freshly baked bread pudding as soon as it comes out of the oven. You can enjoy the bread pudding warm or give it about 15-20 minutes to cool down and set.

    Video

    Notes

    Bread - If your bread is not dry and hard, slice it and bake it in the oven for 10-15 minutes at 250°F to dry it out. Or leave the slices out on the counter for a few hours.
    Plant Milk - Any kind works. It's okay if yours is sweetened or flavored with vanilla. 
    Vegan Butter - If your butter is unsalted, add ¼ teaspoon salt to the flax pudding and ¼ teaspoon salt to the butterscotch sauce.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 374kcal | Carbohydrates: 45.4g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 19.7g | Saturated Fat: 4.3g | Sodium: 214mg | Potassium: 94mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 37.4g | Calcium: 178mg | Iron: 2mg

    The nutrition information is estimated and can vary depending on brands and measurements used.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Bobby Vegetal

      November 19, 2023 at 11:10 am

      5 stars
      This looks so good!

    2. Bonnie

      November 19, 2023 at 1:48 pm

      Hi Bobby, Thank you so much!!

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