Classic Old Fashioned Easy Bread Pudding Recipe
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There’s something wonderfully comforting about an old-fashioned bread pudding. Long before “food waste” became a familiar phrase, British home cooks already knew exactly what to do with a stale loaf. They turned it into bread pudding.
Packed with dried fruit, gently spiced and wonderfully filling, it became a favourite in family kitchens because it was inexpensive, satisfying and never let good bread go to waste.
Whether you remember it from childhood or are making it for the first time, this easy old-fashioned bread pudding recipe is perfect served warm from the oven with a cup of tea but can also be enjoyed served with rich, creamy thick custard.
How To Make Old Fashioned Make Bread Pudding
This has to be one of the easiest cake or pudding recipes to make. There’s no creaming, whisking or risk of curdling. It takes just a little while to soak the bread in your mixing bowl and mash it with a fork until smooth. Then it’s a simple case of just mixing in the remaining ingredients, spoon it into your prepared cake tin, grate over some fresh nutmeg and sugar and bake.
What you end up with is a moist, fruity sweet slice that is good for afternoon tea, lunchboxes, picnics or a comforting pudding.
The History of Bread Pudding
Bread pudding has long been a staple of British home baking, born from a simple principle that was once second nature: waste nothing. At a time when every loaf was valued, stale bread was never thrown away. Instead, it was soaked, mixed with dried fruit, warming spices and butter or suet, then baked into a hearty pudding that could feed the whole family.
By the Victorian era, bread pudding had become a familiar sight in kitchens across Britain. It was inexpensive to make, satisfying to eat and easily adapted to whatever ingredients were on hand. Every household seemed to have its own version, with recipes varying according to family tradition and what was available in the store cupboard.
The pudding remained especially popular throughout the early twentieth century, including during the years of wartime rationing, when home cooks became experts at making the most of simple ingredients. A little dried fruit, a pinch of spice and yesterday’s bread could be transformed into a nourishing bake that was filling enough for tea or supper.
For many people, bread pudding also became a favourite bakery treat. Thick slices could often be found alongside fruit cake and gingerbread in local bakeries, offering an affordable indulgence with a cup of tea.
Today, bread pudding is enjoying something of a revival as more people rediscover traditional recipes and look for ways to reduce food waste. More than just an economical bake, it has become a reminder that some of the most comforting recipes are also the simplest—proof that a humble loaf of bread can be turned into something truly delicious.
Regional Variations
Like many traditional British recipes, bread pudding has never had a single, fixed recipe. Ingredients often reflected local tastes, family traditions and whatever happened to be available in the kitchen.
Norfolk Nelson Slices
One of the best-known regional variations comes from Norfolk, where Nelson Slices (sometimes called Nelson’s Cake) sandwich a rich bread pudding mixture between layers of crisp shortcrust pastry. Flavoured with marmalade and often a little rum, they’re thought to be named after Norfolk’s famous naval hero, Admiral Horatio Nelson.
Northern Bread Pudding
In many parts of Lancashire and Yorkshire, traditional recipes often used beef suet instead of butter, creating a richer, heartier pudding. Dark brown sugar, black treacle or golden syrup were also popular additions, giving the finished bake a deep colour and robust flavour.
Southern Family Recipes
Across southern England, many home bakers preferred butter to suet, although recipes varied from household to household. Mixed peel, orange zest and plenty of warming mixed spice were common additions, and bread pudding was often enjoyed cold with a cup of tea or served warm with custard.
Every Family Was Different
Perhaps the biggest variation wasn’t regional at all. Bread pudding was a true kitchen staple, and every family seemed to have their own treasured recipe. Some added grated apple, others extra dried fruit, while the balance of spices and sweetness was often passed down through generations rather than written in a recipe book.
The Recipe
To make this recipe you will need a good size mixing bowl, a fork for mashing the bread or a hand mixer if you prefer. A large spoon for mixing everything together and a 6″ square cake tin that is lined with greaseproof paper, baking parchment or a cake tin liner and a fine nutmeg grater for adding the freshly grated nutmeg to the top of the bread pudding.
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Old Fashioned Bread Pudding
Equipment
- 1 Mixing Bowl
- 1 Fork
- 1 Large Spoon
- 1 6" square Cake Tin
- Greaseproof Paper or cake tin liner
- 1 Nutmeg Grater
- 1 Cooling Rack
Ingredients
- 225 g Stale Bread (8oz – cubed or torn into small pieces
- 225 g Whole Milk (225ml / 8floz / – just under 1 cup)
- 100 g Dried Fruit (3½ oz / ⅔ cup)
- 25 g mixed peel (1oz / 1/8th cup / 2 tablespoons)
- 25 g Suet (1oz / ¼ cup / 4 tablespoons)
- 50 g Dark Brown Sugar (2oz / ¼ cup – firmly packed)
- 1 tsp Mixed Spice
- 1 Large Free Range Egg
- 1 tbsp Caster Sugar – for sprinkling on the top
- Freshly Grated Nutmeg
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 180℃ / 160℃ Fan / 350℉ / Gas 4
- Line the cake tin with greaseproof paper, baking parchment or a cake tin liner
- Place the cubed bread into a large mixing bowl and pour over the milk. Cover the bowl with a clean teacloth and leave for 30 minutes for the bread to absorb the milk.
- Use a fork to mash the bread to a smooth paste. If any dry bits of bread remain, cover again and leave for another 10 minutes. There should be no need to add any extra liquid. You can also use a hand mixer to get a really smooth texture.
- Add the beaten egg to the bread and mix thoroughly together.
- Stir in the dried fruit, suet, mixed peel, brown sugar and mixed spice. Mix together until everything is incorporated.
- Spoon the mixture into the lined tin and level the top with the back of the spoon.
- Sprinkle over the caster sugar and grate a little fresh nutmeg over the top.
- Bake in the centre of the oven for 1½ hours or until nicely browned and cooked through.
- Remove from the oven and place onto a wire rack to cool.
- Cut into 6 or 9 squares depending on how hungry you are!
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