Illustration of bread and butter pudding with golden overlapping bread triangles in vanilla custard and sultanas between the layers

Pudding

Bread and Butter Pudding with Sultanas and Nutmeg

Published 23 October 2026 · Updated 23 October 2026

Overlapping slices of buttered bread bake into a soft vanilla custard, with sultanas tucked between the layers and golden, crisp edges on top. A little nutmeg flavours this milk-led pudding, while a short soak helps the custard reach the bread before baking.

Not kitchen tested by The Black Farmer.
Serves 6
Prep 55 min
Cook 59 min
Total 124 min

Timing: Allow 124 minutes overall: max(20 minutes butter softening, 10 minutes ingredient organisation) + 10 minutes mixing and assembly + max(25 minutes refrigerated soaking, 20 minutes oven preheating) + 55 minutes baking + 4 minutes for separate thermometer checks and holds + 10 minutes standing. The displayed 55-minute preparation time includes 30 minutes of dedicated preparation (including passive butter softening, with about 20 minutes hands-on) and the 25-minute chilled soak. The timing-plan marinate phase represents soaking, not a flavoured marinade. Organisation overlaps butter softening; oven preheating overlaps soaking, so neither is counted twice. Cooking is 59 minutes including the separate safety checks; the final 10-minute rest is additional. A 45-minute bake gives 114 minutes overall if the other allowances hold. These are planning estimates, not a maximum: slower softening, an oven not ready after soaking, transferring to a wider dish, extra baking or repeated safety checks adds to the total. Keep the pudding refrigerated if the oven is late; the measured cooking endpoint overrides the clock.

Ingredients

Other Ingredients You'll Need

  • Day-old white sliced bread — 280g, including crusts (Ordinary sliced loaf, approximately 12–15mm thick; weigh rather than relying on slice count. Keep the crusts and use only bread fit to eat, never mouldy bread.)
  • Unsalted butter — 40g, divided: 5g for the dish and 35g for the bread (Start with cold butter and cut into small cubes to soften as directed; the softening allowance is included in the timing plan.)
  • Whole milk — 450ml (Keep chilled until mixing; all goes into the custard.)
  • Double cream — 100ml (Keep chilled until mixing; all goes into the custard. Optional serving cream is separate.)
  • Large hen's eggs — 3 large eggs (Use within their date, crack into a clean bowl and discard shells. No assumed edible gram weight or pack size.)
  • Caster sugar — 45g (All whisked into the custard, not used for topping.)
  • Demerara sugar — 12g (All sprinkled over the pudding immediately before baking.)
  • Sultanas — 60g (All between the bread layers, not scattered over exposed tips. Check the packet for sulphites if relevant.)
  • Vanilla extract — 5ml (1 tsp) (All added to the custard.)
  • Ground nutmeg — 1/4 tsp (All whisked into the custard; no unallocated garnish.)

Method

Soften the butter and organise the ingredients

Cut all 40g butter into small cubes and spread them on a plate. Allow about 20 minutes at a moderate room temperature, until readily spreadable, not melted; cold rooms may take longer. During the first 10 minutes of this same softening window, weigh the bread, sugars and sultanas, cut each bread slice diagonally into two triangles and set out the equipment. Leave the eggs, milk and cream chilled until the next step. This ingredient preparation overlaps butter softening; it is not an extra 10 minutes. Keep 5g butter separate for the dish and 35g for spreading. Plan about 2 hours 4 minutes overall using the upper baking estimate, including softening, soaking, preheating, safety checks and resting; endpoint checks override the estimate.

Mix the custard and layer the bread

Allow 10 minutes for mixing, buttering, assembly and clean-up. Grease the metal dish with the reserved 5g butter. Whisk the eggs and all 45g caster sugar until evenly combined, then whisk in all the milk, cream, vanilla and nutmeg. Spread all 35g remaining butter thinly over one side of the bread triangles. Arrange about half the bread in a loosely overlapping lower layer, buttered sides up; scatter all 60g sultanas over it, keeping them away from the rim. Cover with the remaining bread, buttered sides up, tucking the fruit under the upper slices. Pour all the custard slowly over the bread, wetting the upper slices while leaving some tips proud of the liquid. Press lightly with the back of a clean spoon so the lower bread is wetted, without packing it solid. The highest bread and liquid must remain at least 2cm below the rim, no higher than 4cm in a 6cm-deep dish. If it will not fit with this headroom, transfer the full mixture to a wider suitable dish rather than omitting custard; allow longer preparation and reassess baking time. Wash hands and clean utensils and surfaces after handling the raw eggs; do not taste the raw custard.

Soak in the fridge and preheat alongside

Cover the assembled dish and refrigerate for 25 minutes. At the start of this soak, set the oven to 180°C conventional / 160°C fan / gas 4, with a shelf in the centre; budget about 20 minutes for preheating, entirely within the 25-minute soak. If the oven is not ready when the soak ends, leave the pudding refrigerated until it is and add the extra wait to the total. The soak is intended to moisten the bread, not a tested guarantee of complete absorption for every loaf. Do not extend the soak at room temperature or substitute chilled glass or ceramic without manufacturer approval for the temperature change.

Bake until golden and the middle begins to set

Remove the cover, place the cold metal dish on the rimmed tray and sprinkle all 12g demerara sugar over the bread. Put straight into the fully preheated oven. Allow roughly 45–55 minutes of baking before the separate final safety-check stage; start assessing colour and the centre at 45 minutes. The exposed edges should be golden and crisp, and the centre should move as a soft mass rather than slosh like liquid. If the tips are darkening before the middle is ready, loosely cover with foil and continue baking. These are texture and browning cues, not a safety test. Chilled ingredients, a different dish, loaf thickness and oven performance can push the bake beyond this estimate. The timing plan budgets 55 minutes here; setup, sprinkling and any brief foil adjustment are included in that allowance.

Check the custard with a thermometer

Budget a further 4 minutes for careful probing, temperature holds, probe cleaning and removal, beyond the bake estimate. Using oven gloves, put the dish on a heatproof surface. With a clean thermometer, check at least two thick central positions, keeping the sensing tip in the middle depth of the pudding, not against the base, rim or an exposed bread tip. Each checked position must reach at least 75°C and remain at or above 75°C for 30 seconds; time each hold separately and check additional thick areas if readings vary. Clean the probe after use and before rechecking an undercooked area. If any position is below the endpoint or drops below it during its hold, return the dish to the oven, shield the top if needed, continue cooking and repeat the checks with a clean probe. Extra baking and repeated checks add to the total; 4 minutes is an allowance, not a safety deadline. Do not rely on a browned top, a slight wobble, the nominal baking time or later standing to establish safety.

Stand, then spoon into portions

Once the temperature checks and holds have passed, stand the dish on a heatproof surface for 10 minutes before spooning into six portions. This rest lets the custard settle; it is not part of the cooking safety hold. Serve warm, dividing the fruit and soft centre as evenly as practical and giving each portion some crisp bread from the top.

Serving Suggestion

Serve warm in shallow bowls with a small pour of cold double cream for contrast. Serving cream is optional and additional to the 100ml used in the custard; it is not included in recipe quantities or a basket.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which bread should I use?

Use ordinary day-old white sliced bread, weighed with its crusts, and aim for slices 12–15mm thick. Dense sourdough, brioche and very thin sandwich bread do not necessarily absorb or bake in the same way, because their richness and absorbency differ; changing the loaf may require different quantities and baking time. Never use mouldy bread.

Should all the custard disappear during the soak?

No. The 25-minute chilled soak is intended to wet the bread before baking, not to make every drop disappear. Some custard may remain around the layers. Different loaves absorb custard at different rates; keep all the measured custard and preserve the specified headroom rather than squeezing the bread into a solid mass.

What if the top is brown but the centre is not ready?

Loosely shield the top with foil and continue baking. Check at least two thick central positions with a clean food thermometer: each must remain at or above 75°C for 30 seconds. Browning and a soft wobble describe texture, not a safe temperature; allow extra cooking and checking rather than removing it to meet the stated time.

Can I use a smaller dish?

Do not reduce the required capacity or headroom. Use a manufacturer-stated capacity of at least 2.5 litres, at least 6cm internal depth and 2cm clear space above the highest bread or liquid. Approximate dimensions alone do not prove usable volume. A deeper, more crowded pudding can cook differently; if the full mixture does not fit loosely, choose a wider suitable metal dish and reassess the bake.

Why is the total time longer than the oven time?

The plan includes butter softening, preparation, a refrigerated soak and a serving rest, plus a separate thermometer-check allowance. Organisation overlaps softening and oven preheating overlaps soaking. The upper planning total is 124 minutes, but spreadability, oven readiness and the measured cooking endpoint can require longer.