Alright, it’s been a week and I am thankfully feeling really great! I still haven’t been back to the kitchen to cook anything other than one batch of banana bread, but I think I am almost up for the challenge 😉 As I was thinking about recipes to blog about I decided to blog about my favorite recipe of all time..I figured that would make me feel better! The bread pudding from Famous Dave’s is hands-down my favorite dessert on the planet. If I had to choose only one dessert to eat the rest of my life, this bread pudding would definitely be it. I have blogged about many bread puddings in the past few years (Pineapple Coconut Bread Pudding, Kneaders Raspberry Pudding, and Cranberry Orange Bread Pudding) and I was shocked the other day to realize I hadn’t blogged about this version. If you are not a bread pudding fan (as I know many are not) you at least have to try making the Praline Sauce. It is the BEST caramel sauce you could ever imagine! The tanginess from the sour cream gives this caramel an amazing and smooth flavor. The recipe for the Praline Sauce makes a lot which is awesome because the extras are heavenly on a big bowl of vanilla ice cream. Or, really just eaten by the spoonful (I’ve done that sadly!). So, if you are needing a special dessert to serve friends or family, this is one that will blow their socks off. It is rich, smooth and full of delicious nutty and cinnamon flavor. Enjoy 🙂


- 1 loaf French Bread or regular white bread, cut into 1 inch cubes (about 1 1/2 lbs.)
- 2/3 cup golden raisins
- 1 1/2 cup sugar
- 4 cup milk
- 1 cup whipping cream
- 1/4 cup vanilla
- 8 eggs, beaten
- 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
- Whipped cream (for garnish)
- Vanilla Ice Cream (optional)
- 1 cup butter
- 3/4 cup chopped pecans
- 3 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 3/4 cup whipping cream
- 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- Pudding: Coat bottom and sides of a 13-by-9-inch baking pan heavily with butter.Tear bread into 1-inch pieces. Mix with raisins in bowl. Lay bread mixture evenly in prepared dish, turning crust side down, as this tends to burn easily. In bowl, whisk sugar, milk, whipping cream, vanilla, eggs and cinnamon until blended. Pour over bread mixture. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Bake in preheated oven 1 hour, or until pudding is no longer jiggly. Let stand 20 minutes.Cut pudding into portions and put into large dessert bowls. Add a scoop of ice cream next to the pudding, and then spoon 3 to 4 ounces of warm praline sauce over the pudding and the ice cream. Top with whipped cream if desired.
- Sauce: To make this sauce, it is very important to follow the directions carefully and to use a candy thermometer. In a large saucepan, heat '/z cup of the butter until melted. Add pecans and mix well. Bring to a boil.Cook until pecans begin to change color. Mixture will foam up.Add remaining 1/2 cup cubed butter and mix well. This will cool pecan mixture and stop the cooking process. Remove from heat. Do not over cook. Combine brown sugar, whipping cream and cinnamon in a saucepan and mix well. Cook over low heat until blended, stirring constantly. Increase heat and cook until mixture comes to 230 degrees on a candy thermometer. Or boil mixture for about 1 minute. Stir in pecan mixture. Add sour cream and vanilla and mix well. Remove from heat. Makes 4 cups.
There is always a place in my heart for a bread pudding. And this one looks amazing. Definitely on my list!
Looks delicious! I can't wait to try it. Bread Pudding just has a way of feeding your soul. 🙂
You just made my day. This is my FAVORITE bread pudding in the whole world. And now I can make it. Yay! Oh, and thank you. 🙂
I am glad you gals like bread pudding as much as I do!! I can't even look at the picture without my mouth watering. I could eat this dessert morning, noon and night 😉 I hope you enjoy! Let me know how it turns out.
Shandra-
I've made this twice since you posted it, and we have loved it! But, the thing I've run into both times is that after an hour in the oven at 325, it's not even close to being done. This time, after an hour and 20 minutes, I turned it up to 375 and let it go for another half an hour. Even though it was browned really nice on the top, it still was a little jiggly. I even have a convection oven, and used an 11×15 pan with the same amount of ingredients. Am I doing something wrong?
Oh, by the way, I tried using brioche hamburger buns the first time for the bread, and Hawaiian sweet bread hot dog buns the second time (both from the day old rack at the store), and they made it so good!