How to Make Budin de Pan: Easy Bread Pudding Recipe

milk

🥗Healthier: almond milk

💰Cheaper: water + powdered milk

Almond milk reduces calories while maintaining creaminess.

butter

🥗Healthier: coconut oil

💰Cheaper: margarine

Coconut oil adds flavor and is dairy-free.

sugar

🥗Healthier: honey

💰Cheaper: brown sugar

Honey adds natural sweetness and flavor.

eggs

🥗Healthier: flaxseed meal

💰Cheaper: egg substitute

Flaxseed meal is a vegan alternative.

For the Caramel Sauce:

1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add 1 cup of sugar. Cook the sugar, stirring occasionally until it begins to melt and turns brown around the edges. Use a long-handle heatproof rubber spatula to pull the melted sugar around the edges toward the center of the unmelted sugar; this will help the sugar melt evenly.

2. Continue cooking and pulling the melted sugar until all the sugar is melted and the caramel is uniformly dark amber (it should smell caramelly but not burnt), about 10 to 12 minutes total. (If you still have undissolved lumps of sugar, stir it off the heat until melted.)

3. Next, carefully pour the room-temperature water into the melted sugar while continuously stirring the mixture with a heatproof rubber spatula tilted slightly to prevent hot steam from burning you. The mixture will bubble and steam vigorously, and some of the sugar may harden up and crystallize. Don’t worry; just keep stirring the mixture over medium heat for an additional 1-2 minutes until the sugar re-melts completely and the caramel is smooth.

4. Be careful not to overcook the caramel, as it can burn quickly and become bitter. Pour the caramel into the bottom of a 3 Quart (9 x 13) Pyrex Baking Dish; quickly swirl around to coat all bottom and sides. Lay a dishtowel on the bottom of a roasting pan, place the baking dish on top of the towel, and set aside to cool completely.

For the Budin de Pan:

5. Adjust a rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350° degrees. Bring water to a boil in a kettle. In a blender, blend together the evaporated milk, milk, sweetened condensed milk, vanilla extract, eggs, and bread cubes until completely smooth. Alternatively, you can add the bread cubes to a mixing bowl with the custard mixture and stir well to coat the bread completely instead of blending the mixture together; this method can result in a bread pudding with a more traditional texture, with distinct pieces of bread throughout the pudding.

6. Pour the Budin de Pan into the caramel-coated dish. Cover with aluminum foil. Transfer to the oven, and fill the roasting pan with water to the halfway point. Bake until just set, about 70 to 80 minutes. Next, remove from the water bath and let the Budin de Pan cool completely before serving, either at room temperature or in the refrigerator, for about 4 hours, but preferably overnight in the refrigerator.

7. When ready to serve, remove the Budin de pan from the refrigerator and let it sit for 10 minutes. Next, fill a shallow pan with hot water. Dip the bottom of the baking dish in hot water for a few minutes before inverting it so the caramel loosens from the bottom of the baking dish.

8. Run a knife around the baking dish, and be sure to reach the caramel on the bottom; tilt the baking dish slightly to allow a bit of the caramel into the gap.

9. Carefully invert a rimmed platter over the baking dish. Grabbing both, carefully invert the flan onto the individual platters, scraping out any loose caramel, and serve.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Allergens