Apple Walnut Bread Pudding with Cinnamon Cider Sauce
Bake this apple walnut bread pudding on a crisp cool day. It's soft, warm and creamy, and it will make your whole house smell like fall! Drizzle on the sweet and buttery cinnamon cider sauce and enjoy this comforting seasonal dessert.
I received a copy of Wintersweet in exchange for my honest review. All opinions stated herein are straight from my heart.
Good morning! It's Friday morning and I am writing this from a hotel room in Iowa. Ha!
I arrived here in Des Moines last night after a long day of travel. Can you believe that Chicago O'Hare is still goofed up from two weeks ago? Evidently that issue caused a lot of problems that still haven't been completely sorted out, so there were lots of flight delays and such. I was in travel mode from 10 am until around 9 pm, with an extra hour in there for the time difference.
But I'm cozy and warm in my hotel room bed now! In case you're wondering what I'm doing in Des Moines, I'm here for the Better Homes and Gardens Cooking Experience. Remember when I told you all about it here? I can't wait for the fun to begin, but first I want to share this delicious fall recipe with you.
It's from the new book Wintersweet, Seasonal Desserts to Warm the Home, by Tammy Donroe Inman. I was so thrilled when Tammy reached out to me to offer me a copy of this gorgeous book. The timing was perfect (just in time for apple picking season!) and you guys know how I feel about seasonal baking. I spent a good part of last weekend poring over the gorgeous photographs and mouthwatering recipes found in Wintersweet, while curled up under a fluffy blanket on my couch! The kids were playing football with their dad and it was just about the most perfect way to spend a weekend 😉
And then on the first crisp, cool, quiet day I had, I did this:
...and this:
...and then this:
And I baked it in the oven and it made my whole house smell like fall. When everybody got home they knew right away that something delicious had gone down.
The bread pudding is soft, warm, and custardy, with sweet cinnamon apples and toasted walnuts running all throughout, all topped off with the most divine apple cider sauce/syrup. It's sweet and apple-y, so comforting and belly-warming, and just the quintessential fall dessert.
I just love how this cookbook proves that there are so many wonderful seasonal ingredients to be enjoyed in the wintertime. The book is broken down into chapters by ingredient type, and besides apples, Wintersweet also features pears and quince, nuts and chocolate, persimmons, pomegranates and cranberries, citrus, roots, tubers, and gourds, cheese, dried fruits, and dairy and fresh eggs. All the things my mind goes to when I think about winter baking!
I think you will really enjoy baking this apple bread pudding on a crisp cool day. Definitely keep it in mind after your next apple picking trip! And be sure to pick up a copy of Wintersweet for tons more seasonal baking ideas!
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Apple Walnut Bread Pudding with Cinnamon Cider Sauce
Ingredients
For the Filling:
- 1 cup (117 g) walnut pieces
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 2 fresh apples, , large (I used Granny Smith)
- 1 tablespoon apple cider, (water can be substituted)
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar, (firmly packed)
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 16 ounces (453.59 g) loaf bread, (such as challah, French, or Italian bread)
For the Custard:
- 3 eggs, (large)
- ¾ cup (165 g) light brown sugar, (firmly packed)
- 2 cups (473.18 ml) heavy cream
- 1 cup (236.59 ml) milk, (I used 1%)
- 1 cup (236.59 ml) apple cider
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg
For the Cinnamon Cider Sauce:
- 4 tablespoons (59.15 g) unsalted butter
- 1 ⅓ cups (293.33 g) light brown sugar, (firmly packed)
- 2 cups (473.18 ml) apple cider
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
To Make the Filling:
- Toast the walnuts in a dry medium skillet over medium heat, tossing occasionally until they are fragrant and begin to turn golden brown in spots, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove to a small plate and let cool.
- In the same skillet, heat the butter over medium heat and saute the apples until well coated.
- Stir in the apple cider or water, brown sugar, cinnamon, and lemon juice, and saute until the apples are soft and most of the liquid has evaporated, 3 to 5 minutes.
- Lightly mist a 13x9-inch casserole with non-stick spray.
- Cut the bread into ¾-inch cubes and add to the prepared baking dish.
- Add the apples and walnuts, and toss together to distribute.
To Make the Custard:
- Whisk together the eggs and brown sugar in a large bowl.
- Pour the mixture over the bread cubes and apples, and toss well. Let soak for 20 minutes to an hour.
- Flip the bread cubes over with a spatula so that the drier bread on top is now on the bottom. Let soak an additional 20 minutes to an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Bake the bread pudding for 45-55 minutes, or until puffed and golden and set in the center.
To Make the Cinnamon Cider Sauce:
- Bring the butter, brown sugar, apple cider, cinnamon, and salt to a boil in a small pot, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
- Simmer, uncovered, over medium heat for 20-30 minutes or until the mixture is syrupy and reduced.
To Serve:
- Top bowls of warm bread pudding with a scoop of vanilla or buttermilk ice cream and a generous drizzle of cinnamon cider sauce.
- The pudding can be stored, covered, in the refrigerator for 3 days.
- Reheat in the oven or microwave.
Wow Allie, this look amazing. It kind of reminds me of an apple blossom and I bet it tastes great warmed with vanilla ice cream.
Thanks, Chineka! Yes the vanilla ice cream is an absolute must! 😉
Absolutely in love with this fall version of bread pudding. And can we talk about the cinnamon cider sauce? I think I need that on everything this fall!! Thanks for sharing, Allie!
I could drink that sauce through a straw, lol! Thank you so much for the sweet comment, Liz! xoxo
I love the picture of those apples! the pudding looks FANTASTIC! I can only imagine how amazing your house would have smelled while making this!
So much better than a scented candle, lol! Thank you so much Manali you are too kind my dear! 😀
Gosh this looks fantastic! We have got to get to an orchard! The kids have been hounding me to make apple sauce, and now I've got this bread pudding and Club Narwhal's monkey bread to add to the list 🙂 The cookbook looks really great too! I love that she devoted an entire book to the winter season. Happy Monday!
How about that monkey bread! Right??? Thanks hon!
I want my apartment to smell like fall!!! NEEEEDDD this.
do-it do-it do-it! 😉
Hi Allie! I found your site through Gotta Get Baked, and I'm so happy I did. Your site is lovely. Oh man, no words can describe the deliciousness that is this pudding. Nom! Have fun at BHG.
Yay! I love Gotta Get Baked; Nancy is my favorite! So glad you clicked over and thank you for being so sweet! xoxo
Incredible! What a knock out dessert! You've outdone yourself.
All the credit goes to Tammy and her delicious recipe... the book is full of stuff like this! So happy you enjoyed, Jess! Thanks for the sweet comment <3
"Soft, warm, and creamy..." GURL, I am so sold! I am such a sucker for home made custard too. I bet they are a fine match. Pinning! I plan to make use of this big time in the next couple of months! <3
Girl you are gonna love it! I am a custard sucker too- wait that sounds kinda gross but you know what I mean! Thanks for the sweet comment, Tashiana!
Oh my goodness, I can just imagine how incredible your house smelled while this beauty was baking. It looks absolutely mouthwatering especially with the ice cream and cinnamon cider sauce! Yikes, glad you're at the hotel now after such a long day of travel. Have lots of fun this weekend, Allie:)
Thank you Kelly! It was so good I could hardly tear myself away for the trip, lol. But it was a blast! Thanks hon xoxo
Wowza. This looks amazing! I need to start baking with apples!
Oh ya! It's time! Let's do apples! So glad you liked, hon, thanks for the sweet comment!
Love your recipes but, wish they were printer friendly....
Sandy have you tried clicking the "print" button on the recipe card? Does that not work for you for some reason? What browser do you use. Let me know so I can get this fixed for you! Thank you so much sweetie <3
Whoa, you could knock me over with a feather right now! THIS is comfort fall food at its finest! Love the apples and the walnuts together, that combo with that sauce is almost too good to be true. Fantastic recipe Allie, you make me feel warm and cozy through the screen!
Yay! That is my goal in life, lol! Thank you so much Mary Frances! xoxo
Um, I need this in my life ASAP! What a lovely pudding (and that cider sauce? I need to swim in that :)!
You're gonna have so much fun, Allie! Can't wait to read about your experience.
This bread pudding looks SO good! I love all of the fall flavors it's packed with. 🙂
Thanks Julie! I'm so looking forward to it. Hugs to you!
This looks so warm and comforting! Love that gif 🙂
Thanks sweetie! I had a lot of fun making it 😉 So glad you enjoyed; thanks for the great feedback! <3
I love those GIFs you include in your posts. They always make my mouth water! Bread pudding was on my weekend to bake list too! This looks spectacular!
How perfect! I hope you can throw some apples in there because it all works together so beautifully. Thanks for the sweet comment, Lina!