I really love it when a dessert can also double as breakfast. Bread Pudding is basically like a French Toast cake, making it decadent, sweet and something you’d want to eat any time of the day.
Now a bourbon/whiskey sauce is usually the critical last steps to a bread pudding, making sure every last drop is doused in it. But since we’re going to make this in a bundt pan, I decided to take that bourbon/whiskey sauce and kick it up a notch by making it a bourbon/whiskey GLAZE!
It’s also super easy to make in the Instant Pot with moist and spongy results!
Here’s How I Made It!:
Let’s begin with some croissants (or challah or brioche). I love using the ones from Costco because they’re amazing AND cheap!
Slice the bread into cubes and set aside.
Now go to the Instant Pot, toss in some butter, heat it up…
…and let the butter melt.
Now add in some milk…
…white sugar…
…light brown sugar…
…and vanilla extract.
Stir together well but only WARM the milk in the pot (we don’t want it to boil).
When warmed, immediately remove the liner pot and set on a non-heated surface to cool (or pop in the fridge) until no longer hot.
In the meanwhile, take 3 eggs…
…crack ’em in a bowl…
…and beat with a whisk.
When (and ONLY when) the milk is cool to the touch, add in the eggs…
…and whisk together and it will form a custard. (If you add the eggs while the milk’s still warm, it will begin to cook the eggs and we definitely don’t want that!)
Now add in some cinnamon…
…nutmeg…
…and whisk.
Pour the custard over the bread…
…making sure all of it is sopped up and absorbed by the bread (you can mix it around with some clean hands).
Put a lid on the bowl and pop it in the fridge to cool for an hour.
In the meantime, take the liner pot, clean it out and return it to the Instant Pot.
Now grab one of these perfect Instant Pot-fitting bundt pans...
…and grease all of it with some butter or non-stick cooking spray (don’t forget to grease the middle!)
Using clean hands, take the now chilled custard-soaked bread…
…and place it in the bundt pan…
…making sure all of it is evenly distributed in the pan.
Cover the pan with some tin foil, poking a hole in the center where for the steam to easily pass through.
Place the trivet in the Instant Pot along with some water…
…and rest the bundt pan on top of it. Secure the lid and cook at high pressure.
When done, carefully remove the bundt pan out of the pot…
…remove the foil and rest to cool. Preheat the oven to 400.
Now it’s time to make that killer bourbon/whiskey glaze! Going back to the Instant Pot, dump out the water from the pot used for steaming the bundt, add in some butter and give it some heat.
Once the butter’s melted…
…add in some salt…
…a bunch of sugar…
…and stir well.
Then, add in a little maple syrup…
…and continue to stir.
Make sure you monitor the cooking of the glaze carefully, because the second it begins to bubble…
…add in that beaten egg (if adding it).
Stir the egg in immediately, watch the beautiful flakes form and remove the liner pot from the Instant Pot and set on the countertop.
Now let’s give this glaze its name! Take some bourbon/whiskey…
…add it to the liner pot (it will still be plenty hot after just removing it from the Instant Pot)…
…and hear it sizzle and smell it blossom.
When done, it’ll look like this. Let it set and cool slightly (and if using Corn Flakes for crunch, add ’em in now).
Meanwhile, take the bundt pan, flip onto a non-stick sprayed foil-lined baking sheet and un-mold (using a mixing spoon to tap the bundt helps and it will slip right out).
And there’s our beautiful bread pudding!
Let’s pop it into the oven for 5-10 mins to give it a little outer-edge toasting (keep and eye on it – ovens vary)…
…and then transfer to a serving plate (you can also skip the oven step if you wish as it isn’t really necessary).
Now take that incredible glaze, pour it over our bread pudding…
…and smoothen the glaze out so it’s evenly coating the pudding.
It should look like the stuff of bourbon bread pudding dreams when done.
Cut yourself a slice…
…marvel at how dense and beautiful this bread pudding is…
…plate it up and enjoy!
Instant Pot Bread Pudding with Bourbon Glaze
If I could figuratively get drunk on one dessert without literally doing so, it would be this one. Classic with a crispy egg-flake glaze.
Ingredients
For The Bread Pudding
- 6 cups of croissants or challah or brioche, largely cubed (I used 6 croissants from Costco that come in packs of 12)
- 2 cups of whole milk
- 2 tbsp (1/4 stick) salted butter, + more for greasing the bundt pan
- 1.5 tsp of vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp + 2 tsp of white sugar
- 2 tbsp + 2 tsp of light brown sugar
- 1/8 tsp of cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp of nutmeg
- 3 eggs, beaten
For The Bourbon/Whiskey Glaze
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) of unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup of white sugar
- 1/8 tsp of salt
- 1 tbsp of maple syrup
- 1 egg, beaten (optional, but will add a lovely, flaky and slightly crispy consistency to the sauce)
- 1/4 cup of bourbon or whiskey (I used Maker’s Mark)
For Fun
- Vanilla ice cream, scooped
- Corn Flakes, for topping
Instructions
- On the Instant Pot, hit “Sauté” and “Adjust” so it’s on the “Less” or “Low” setting. Melt the butter and then add in the milk, white sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract. Stir together for just a few moments until warmed (but do NOT let the milk bubble – we want it just warm enough so that everything melds together easily).
- Turn the heat off the pot and remove the liner pot to sit on a protected counter-top surface to cool for about 15-20 minutes (or pop in the fridge to speed up the cooling if you have the space). The mixture MUST be cooled before we add the eggs to it or they will cook from the heat and we definitely don’t want that! Once cooled to the touch, add in the eggs and whisk together to form our custard. Add in the cinnamon and nutmeg and then give it a final whisk
- Pour the custard over the cubed bread in a mixing bowl and mix together well so that all of the bread is sopping up the custard. Pop in the fridge for an hour to fully cool and set. Clean out the liner pot and then return to the Instant Pot (we’ll make our bourbon/whiskey glaze in there a little later)
- Take a 6-cup bundt pan that will properly fit in your Instant Pot and grease it with some butter. When cooled in the fridge, transfer the custard-soaked bread cubes to the bundt pan and distribute it evenly. Cover with tin foil, poke a whole through the center where the hole in the bundt is for easy steam access
- Place the trivet in the Instant Pot, add 1.5 cups of water, rest the bundt pan on top (it will fit just perfectly in a 6qt Instant Pot and with room to spare in an 8qt), secure the lid and hit “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” High Pressure for 25 minutes. Quick release when done
- *The step is optional: Pre-heat the oven to 400. Carefully transfer the bundt pan to a foil-lined baking sheet coated with non-stick spray. Flip the bundt and gently tap with a mixing spoon so the bread pudding easily slides out. Pop in the oven for about 5-10 minutes until it becomes lightly browned/toasty on the edges (keep an eye on it as all ovens vary). Remove when done and transfer to a serving plate and allow to cool. If not popping in the oven, just unmold the bread pudding onto a serving plate
- While the bread pudding is browning in the oven or cooling, go back to the Instant Pot and make the bourbon/whiskey glaze. Hit “Sauté” and “Adjust” so it’s on the “More” or “High” setting. Melt the butter and then add in the salt, sugar and maple syrup and stir together for a few moments until it begins to bubble. The sugar should only be partially dissolved which is good for this glaze – we want it that way! KEEP AN EYE ON THE POT because we don’t want it to become like a sticky, chewy, caramel-like consistency! As soon as it begins to bubble, add in that egg (if using) and stir. It will cook immediately and form a lovely texture. After a moment of stirring it through and through, turn the pot off and quickly remove the liner pot from the Instant Pot and set on a protected counter-top surface. As a final step, add in the bourbon/whiskey and stir it in. It will sizzle upon contact and the heat from the glaze and the pot will cook off some of the alcohol (and release an incredible scent). Stir well and let set for a moment. If adding in some Corn Flakes for crunch, now’s the time to add em in!
- Take the bourbon glaze and pour it over the bundt, icing it along the sides. Cut a slice and serve with some vanilla ice cream!
- Enjoy and read the “Jeffrey Sez” section for some great tips on how to change this amazing treat up!
Jeffrey's Tips
In order to make this bread pudding in a fantastic, easily sliceable cake-like form, you are going to DEFINITELY want to have this fantastic 6-cup bundt pan which you can buy here! It will fit into both the 6qt and 8qt Instant Pots!
Don’t feel like turning your oven on at the end? No problem – skip it! Some people just enjoy doing this for a little more crispiness (there’s that word again) and a toasted/browned texture.
Don’t drink booze? Sub in 1/4 cup of iced tea for the bourbon!
Want more things in your bread pudding? Sure thing! Add in some raisins, peeled & sliced apples and/or some berries when mixing the bread with the egg-custard! You can even add in some chocolate chips!
Want it SUPER crazy? Separately cook up some bacon in a skillet until it’s super crispy, crumble it and add it to the finished bourbon glaze! Also, fold some Corn Flakes in with the glaze at the end for even more of a crunch!
As good as it is for a dessert, this also makes for a GREAT breakfast! You can even serve it warmed up with some maple syrup, whipped cream and preserves! It’s like an incredible french toast casserole!
Jodi
Do you think you could substitute almond, soy, or coconut milk for regular milk?
Jeffrey
Sure!
Dani
Hello, I was wondering the purpose of adding eggs to the glaze, it seems like (and looks like) it would be kind of scrambled eggy? Is that intentional? Would like to make with the Costco croissants in my freezer but want to double check first since I don’t feel like my fam would be into the eggy syrup thing. Thanks!!
Jeffrey
The become sort of crispy and flaky like a corn flake. Totally optional if you don’t wish to add them!
Martin Jacoby
Another very tasty recipe! Thanks, Jeff! Be sure that you read through the entire recipe, carefully, before you start. Maybe Jeff has a different way of figuring prep time than me. It certainly took me me more than five minutes to get all of the ingredients measured mixed, “sauteed” etc. THEN, step 2, cool for 15-20 minutes; step 3, cool in the frig for one hour. Oy, I’m already over the 1 hour total time. Oh well, it tasted great!
Jeffrey
You’re right. I will update the prep time for this one! That said, I’m thrilled you enjoyed!
Steve Carroll
6 cups of cubed bread seams kind of arbitrary to me. That would depend on the size of the cubes. Can you restate that as to weight of bread needed?
Jeffrey
That’s answered in the recipe card!