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!
Don’t throw your old bread away, use it to make scrumptious bread pudding! This is one of those no waste, feel-good recipes that only needs a few ingredients. This dessert has been around for a very long time and I think it’s so magical how it’s a way of turning something old, hard, and dry into a warm, delicious dessert.
Speaking of no waste, you can dip the rest of the bread in soup such as this Vegan Gnocchi Soup or this Sopa de Fideo.
You Will Love This Bread Pudding Because…
I can’t wait for you to try this ridiculously delicious 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 as well!
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
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, etc. 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. Dry bread soaks up the liquid better than fresh bread.
Sugar - This is the cane sugar I buy because I can count on it being vegan. Other sugars such as brown, turbinado, or coconut would work, but I find cane sugar to produce the best flavor in this bread pudding.
Flaxseeds - Ground flaxseeds, also known as flaxseed meal (Amazon link) 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 - I use this unsweetened oat milk, but any other plant-based milk will work just as well. 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 or not 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 substitute if not using pecans.
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 - Again, I use oat milk in the sauce. I like my sauce to be on the thinner side for drizzling over the bread pudding. However, if you want a thicker consistency, use the top layer from a can of full-fat coconut milk instead.
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.
How to Make Vegan Bread Pudding
Here are some quick visual steps. The full recipe with exact measurements can be found within the recipe card below.
Bread Pudding Step-by-Step Instructions
Prepare the Pudding Mixture - Mix the cane sugar, flaxseed meal, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Then, warm the oat milk and vegan butter in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Stir this until the butter has melted. Add this warm mixture to 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.
Cube the Bread - Grease a large casserole or oven-safe dish. Cut half of a 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.
Soak the Bread - Give the pudding mixture a good stir and then pour it over the bread. Press all of the bread pieces down into the liquid. Add a piece of foil to 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 about 10 minutes while the oven heats.
Bake the Bread Pudding - Sprinkle the nuts on top and bake the bread pudding for about 45-55 minutes. It will be done when it has a golden brown color and the center doesn’t have a pool of liquid anymore.
Make the Sauce - Make the butterscotch sauce while the bread pudding is in the oven. Start by melting the 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.
Enjoy! - Drizzle the sauce over the bread pudding. You can either eat this dessert warm or let it cool down before you do. It will set as it cools.
Variation Ideas
- Add chocolate chips, raisins, or dried cranberries to the bread pudding.
- Use different types of bread such as French, Challah, cinnamon raisin, etc.
- Mix-in fresh fruit like blueberries or peeled apples.
Related Vegan Recipes
I hope you loved this Vegan Bread Pudding with Butterscotch Sauce! Please leave a star rating and comment below.
Vegan Bread Pudding with Butterscotch Sauce
Ingredients
Bread Pudding
- 6 cups day-old bread (about 6 thick slices)
- ⅔ cup cane sugar
- ¼ cup flaxseed meal
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3 cups oat 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 oat 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 oat milk up together in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Stir them until the butter has fully melted.
- Add the vanilla and warm vegan butter and plant milk mixture to the large bowl. Stir this pudding mixture together and set it aside for 5 minutes to give the flaxseed time to thicken.
- Grease a large (2.5 quart) casserole or oven safe dish. Place a sheet of foil on the bottom rack of the oven to prevent possible spills. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Cut half of the loaf of bread into slices and then cubes about 1 inch in size. Add them to the casserole dish.
- Give the 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
- Melt the vegan butter in a small pan over medium heat.
- Add the brown sugar, oat 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. Continue to stir occasionally.
- Remove the pan from the heat once the sauce has thickened. Let it cool for 3-5 minutes because it will be hot! Pour the sauce over the bread pudding.
- You can enjoy the bread pudding warm or give it about 15-20 minutes to cool down and set.
Video
Notes
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 300° for 20 minutes.Storage
Refrigerator: Store leftover bread pudding in a covered dish in the refrigerator for 4 days. Reheat the bread pudding in the microwave at 30-second intervals. Freezer: Freeze individual slices in sealed containers for 3 months. When you’re ready to eat a slice, let it thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Reheat it in the microwave at 30-second intervals until heated through.Nutrition
The nutrition information is estimated and can vary depending on brands and measurements used.
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