Budín de pan (Puerto Rican Bread Pudding)
Budín de pan, or bread pudding, is a classic Puerto Rican and Latin American dessert that turns stale bread into a rich and comforting treat. Made with simple ingredients like bread, milk, eggs, sugar, and warm spices, it’s infused with cinnamon, raisins, and a touch of rum. Enjoy it warm or chilled for a nostalgic and delicious bite.
Servings: 16 servings
Calories: 297kcal
Ingredients
- 1 loaf Puerto Rican bread If Puerto Rican bread is not available, use Cuban, French, or Italian bread.
- 1 qt milk
- 2 sticks cinnamon
- 6 cloves
- 1 star anise
- 6 allspice seeds
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ tsp (pinch) salt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- ½ stick butter
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup raisins if using
- 1 shot dark rum completely optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325F. Butter desired baking pan.
- Prepare the milk with Sugar, Spices, Salt, and Vanilla. Place it on the stove and warm through. Mix the sugar until dissolved. Bring the milk to a boil, being careful not to boil over.
- While the milk warms, soak the raisins with warm water and a splash of rum (optional to use rum). Use enough water to cover the raisins and cover.
- Once the milk mixture has boiled, strain and add to the bread crumbles (The picture shows spices so that you can see the final look of the milk before straining.)
- Add the milk mixture to the bread crumbles. Mix to moisten all the bread. Let soak for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes, add lemon zest, grated ginger, and butter and incorporate.
- Lightly beat the eggs and add to mixture, mixing thoroughly.
- Drain excess liquid from raisins and add to mixture.
- Pour mixture into baking pan. I chose two small aluminum pans because I was going to gift them. Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until a knife or toothpick inserted in the center may come out slightly moist but not wet. If it's completely dry, the pudding might be overcooked.
- While the pudding cooks, pour a can of sweetened condensed milk into a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a heat-resistant spatula. As it thickens and changes to a golden brown color, add rum. Cook for an additional minute, then remove it from the heat. Let it cool before using.
- Once the pudding is ready, remove it from the oven and let it rest for 15 to 30 minutes before serving. Cut into pieces and serve with rum caramel sauce, ice cream, or both.
Notes
Top Tip: Removing the crust of the bread
Removing the crust gives a smoother texture to the finished product. Crumble bread into bite-size pieces.- Stale Bread: Buy your bread at least three days in advance. Allow the bread to sit out and become stale. Once the bread becomes stale, the flavor changes into a tart taste and the bread's texture will be crumbly and hard. This helps tremendously in the making of this dish. You can make "stale" bread by heating the oven to 150-200℉. Cut the loaf in half, cross, and lengthwise. Place the pieces of bread on a cookie sheet and let them rest in the oven for about 20~30 minutes. Stale bread is a lot easier to remove from the crust as well. The bread will practically crumble in your hands.
- The smaller the pieces, the better: If you want to make this bread pudding smooth and silky. Traditional American bread pudding has larger pieces and is not soaked to the point that the bread will dissolve. In Puerto Rico, we dissolve the bread into the custard.
- Warm or Cold: This pudding can be served chilled or at room temperature; however, served warm enhances the flavor and texture of the dessert.
- To warm in the oven:
- Preheat to 300°F (150°C).
- Cover the pudding with foil to prevent drying out.
- Heat for 10–15 minutes or until warmed through.
- Stovetop (For Individual Slices)
- Melt a little butter in a pan over low heat.
- Add a slice of bread pudding and warm for a few minutes per side.
- To warm in the oven:
- Room Temperature: It's best if the eggs and milk are at room temperature, as this helps them mix more evenly and bake more consistently. Cold ingredients can lead to uneven texture or longer baking time. Let your ingredients sit out for about 30 minutes before mixing if your ingredients are cold.
Nutrition
Serving: 2oz | Calories: 297kcal | Carbohydrates: 34g | Net Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 35mg | Sodium: 218mg | Potassium: 167mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 27g | Vitamin A: 216IU | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 83mg | Iron: 1mg | Phosphorus: 83mg | Alcohol: 1g
