Banana Bread Meets Bread Pudding in the Ultimate Fall Dessert

Why It Works

• Drying the bread in the oven drives off excess moisture so it can soak up more custard without collapsing or turning soggy.
• Sweetened condensed milk adds sweetness while giving the custard a dense, creamy texture that makes each bite richer and more satisfying.

Neither banana bread nor bread pudding need much of an introduction. Put them together, though, and you get one of the most comforting desserts imaginable—plush, custardy, and full of banana-scented warmth. Finished with a drizzle of nutty caramel, it’s a dessert that feels as right on a holiday table as it does on a quiet Sunday night. This version comes from my colleague Amanda Holstein from our Birmingham, Alabama test kitchen, and it’s one you’ll want to come back to again and again.

Banana Bread’s Softer, Creamier Side

Think of this as banana bread at its most luxurious. Chunks of challah or brioche are dried in the oven, so they hold their shape while soaking up a custard of whole milk, cream, sweetened condensed milk, eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla. The condensed milk does more than add sweetness—it gives the custard a dense, creamy body that makes each bite especially rich and satisfying. Mashed bananas are then folded into the mixture, lending natural sweetness and that unmistakable banana bread flavor. The bread soaks until saturated, every cube spongy with custard but still distinct enough to give you texture in every bite. If you’re feeling generous, a handful of toasted pecans adds welcome crunch and nuttiness.

Once baked, the pudding sets into a golden, puffed slab with a lightly toasted top and a custardy center. Slice in and you’ll find pockets of mashed banana, the occasional nutty crunch, and a flavor that recalls the best loaf of banana bread you’ve ever had—only here it’s softer, creamier, and spoonable.

A Sauce That Matches the Pudding

A bread pudding this comforting deserves a topping that can match it, and Amanda delivers with brown butter caramel. Butter is cooked until intensely fragrant, the milk solids toasting and deepening to a rich amber, then whisked into melted sugar, heavy cream, and a pinch of salt. The result is glossy and pourable, with layered flavors that are sweet, toasty, and balanced by just enough salt. Drizzled over the warm pudding, it seeps into the nooks and crannies, making each bite richer and silkier.

Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

Double the Comfort

Banana bread and bread pudding each on their ownh are warm, comforting, and endlessly reliable, which makes bringing them together feel inevitable. Drizzled with browned butter caramel—and maybe a scoop of ice cream if you feel like it—you get comfort in its most complete form.

This recipe was developed by Amanda Holstein; the headnote was written by Laila Ibrahim.

Banana Bread Meets Bread Pudding in the Ultimate Fall Dessert

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For the Bread Pudding: 

• 454 g challah or brioche bread (16 ounces; about 1 loaf), cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes

• 1 1/2 cups (355 ml) whole milk

• 1 cup (7 1/2 ounces; 216 g) heavy whipping cream

• 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

• 226 g light brown sugar (about 8 ounces; 1 packed cup, plus 2 packed tablespoons), divided

• 4 large eggs

• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) vanilla extract

• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

• 1/2 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use half as much by volume

• 680 g (1 1/2 pounds) very ripe bananas (about 4 or 5 bananas), mashed

• 126 g (4 1/2 ounces; about 1 cup) chopped pecans, toasted, optional

• Cooking spray

For Brown Butter Caramel Sauce:

• 85 g unsalted butter (3 ounces; 6 tablespoons)

• 198 g (7 ounces; 1 cup) granulated sugar

• 1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy whipping cream, at room temperature

• 1/4 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use half as much by volume

1. For the Bread Pudding: Adjust oven rack to middle position. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Arrange bread cubes in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and bake, stirring bread and rotating baking sheet halfway through, until bread is fully dry, about 10 minutes. Allow bread to cool, about 10 minutes.

   Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

2. In a large bowl, whisk milk, heavy cream, condensed milk, 1 cup (213 g) brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt until well combined. Stir in mashed bananas and pecans, if using. Let sit, pressing down on bread occasionally, for 5 minutes. Stir gently to combine, ensuring the cubes of bread left unsubmerged on the top are now submerged on the bottom. Continue to soak, pressing gently on bread occasionally until bread is saturated and custard is mostly absorbed, about 5 minutes more.

   Serious Eats / Robby Lozano, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf, Prop Styling: Phoebe Hausser

   Serious Eats / Robby Lozano, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf, Prop Styling: Phoebe Hausser

3. Spray a 9- x 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Transfer bread mixture, along with any remaining liquid, into the prepared baking dish and gently press cubes into custard.

4. Sprinkle evenly with remaining 2 tablespoons brown sugar. Bake until center is set and bread is lightly toasted on top, 50 to 55 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 15 minutes before serving.

   Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

5. For Brown Butter Caramel Sauce: While bread pudding bakes, in a medium saucepan, cook butter over medium-high heat, stirring often, until solids are amber, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a medium heatproof bowl and let cool slightly, about 5 minutes. Wash and dry saucepan.

   Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

6. Place sugar in now-empty saucepan and cook, undisturbed, over medium-low heat, until sugar begins to melt, about 5 minutes. Gently stir or swirl pan to evenly cook sugar until no clumps remain and sugar turns light amber, about 2 minutes. Immediately remove saucepan from heat and carefully whisk in browned butter. Slowly add heavy cream (caramel mixture will begin to bubble), whisking constantly until combined. Whisk in salt. Pour caramel over warm bread pudding. Alternatively, divide bread pudding into individual portions and pour caramel over each portion. Serve.

   Serious Eats / Robby Lozano

Special Equipment

Large rimmed baking sheet; 9- x 13-inch baking dish; medium saucepan

Make-Ahead and Storage

You can assemble the pudding through step 3 up to 2 days ahead and store it, covered, in the refrigerator. Pop it into the oven at 350℉ (175°C) and bake until center is set and top is browned, about 1 1/2 hours before you want to serve it.

Once cooled, leftover bread pudding can be covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days. Reheat covered with aluminum foil in the oven at 350℉ (175°C) until warmed through. Remove foil and continue baking until top is crisp, about 10 additional minutes. If serving the caramel separately, gently warm it in a small saucepan until pourable.