We highly recommend this take on a traditional Irish bread pudding recipe from Irish-American blogger Mairead Geary.

One of my all-time favorite desserts is bread pudding. Traditionally, in Ireland and England, bread puddings are steamed, but sometimes there just isn’t enough time in the day to dedicate a few hours to steaming a raisin pudding.

My kids love cinnamon raisin bread, so I buy many loaves each week. As I toasted a few slices one day I got to thinking what a perfect ingredient for bread pudding.

It already has raisins and cinnamon, so I decided just a few more ingredients might create a very simple bread pudding, that could be baked in the oven, instead of steamed.

Once I developed my recipe, I was in heaven. I hope you enjoy my hassle-free, bread pudding recipe, no boiling required.

Easy cinnamon raisin Irish bread pudding recipe

Serves: 8

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 50 minutes

Total time: 1 hour, 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 14 medium slices cinnamon-raisin bread (1 loaf minus the outer crusty slices)
  • 4 large eggs
  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1fl oz brandy
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 2 tablespoons chopped crystallized ginger
  • 1/2 cup golden raisins
  • Cooking spray (for baking dish)
  • 1 tablespoon sugar (to sprinkle on top of pudding) (optional)

Method

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, and brandy together. Add the sugar, chopped ginger, golden raisins, and cinnamon. Mix well.

Cut the bread into 1-inch pieces. Gently stir the bread pieces into the egg mixture. Let stand for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Preheat the oven to 350F while the pudding soaks.

Coat an 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray.

Pour the pudding mixture into the baking dish. If desired, sprinkle the top with a little sugar.

Bake at 350F for 45 to 50 minutes. When cooked a knife inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Serve warm with egg custard sauce or vanilla ice cream.

Enjoy!

*Mairead Geary came to America for one year 20 years ago. She now lives with her husband and children in Kentucky and is proud to be an American citizen. Read more on her blog here

*Originally published in August 2016. Updated in Oct 2023.