London Bread Pudding
A dense, deeply spiced slab of fruit-studded baked bread pudding with a crunchy sugar crust. An enduring East End bakery staple made from humble leftovers.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 75 min
- Total
- 95 min
- Servings
- 9
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Calories
- 365 kcal
Equipment
- •20cm square baking tin
- •greaseproof paper
- •large mixing bowl
- •wooden spoon
- •fork
Nutrition
Per serving, approximate
- Calories
- 365 kcal
- fat
- 12 g
- carbs
- 58 g
- fibre
- 3 g
- protein
- 6 g
- calories
- 365 kcal
Instructions
- 1
Grease a 20cm square baking tin and line the base with greaseproof paper.
- 2
Place the torn stale bread into a large mixing bowl.
- 3
Pour over the milk and water, pressing down firmly to submerge all the bread.
- 4
Leave the bread to soak for 30 minutes until thoroughly soft.
- 5
Preheat your fan oven to 160°C (180°C conventional).
- 6
Mash the soaked bread thoroughly using a fork until completely broken down.
- 7
Add the dried fruit, mixed peel, brown sugar, melted butter, spices, and egg.
- 8
Beat vigorously with a wooden spoon until a thick, uniform batter forms.
- 9
Transfer the mixture into the prepared tin and level the surface evenly.
- 10
Scatter the demerara sugar evenly across the top to form a crust.
- 11
Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes until dark golden and firm to touch.
- 12
Cool completely in the tin before slicing into nine neat squares.
Chef's tips
Squeeze out any excess liquid only if your bread was exceptionally soft or fresh, as dense crusty loaves need full hydration. London bread pudding tastes even better the day after baking once the spices have settled.
Ingredient substitutions
- unsalted butter → vegetable suet or shredded beef suet
- mixed spice → ground cinnamon with a pinch of allspice and cloves
Storage
Store the cooled squares in an airtight tin at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Reheating
Warm individual squares in a low fan oven at 140°C for 10 minutes, or enjoy cold.
Common mistakes to avoid
- •Slicing the pudding while hot, which causes the dense slab to crumble
- •Using very fresh sandwich bread, which turns overly gummy rather than setting properly
Serving suggestions
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