Sweet Potato Praline Bread Pudding

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American, Soul Food

Prep Time: 30

Cook Time: 2 15

Total Time: 2 45

Servings: servings

Calories: 446kcal

Author: Jazzmine Woodard

Decadent and soulful southern sweet potato bread pudding topped with homemade pecan praline sauce

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Equipment

1 sheet pan
2 mixing bowl
1 kitchen spoon or whisk or mixing spatula
1 large oblong pan or two 9 x 13-inch baking dishes
1 small saucepan

Ingredients

For the Sweet Potato Bread Pudding

1 pound sweet potatoes about two large sweet potatoes, around six inches long and three inches thick
2 loaves French bread preferably 1-3 days old
8 eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups half and half
15 ounces pumpkin puree
6 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon fine sea salt

For the Praline Sauce

1 cup unsalted butter
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup heavy cream
1 ½ cup pecan halves or chopped pecans

Instructions

Prepare the Sweet Potatoes: Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Poke a few holes in sweet potatoes and place directly onto oven rack with a sheet pan underneath to catch any drips. Bake for about 45 minutes or until easily pierced with a dinner fork.
*This can be done several days in advance. See notes.
1 pound sweet potatoes
Remove sweet potatoes and reset oven to 350 degrees. Place in freezer for a few minutes to make them easier to handle, then peel off the skin (it should come away easily) and place sweet potatoes in a bowl.
Mash them to your desired consistency (by hand for chunky texture or with a food processor for smooth puree).
Assemble the Bread Pudding: Meanwhile, tear or cut bread into one-inch pieces and place into a bowl. Set aside.
2 loaves French bread
In another mixing bowl, beat the eggs until uniform. Mix in sugar, heavy cream, half-and-half, pumpkin, melted butter, vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sea salt, then stir in the cooled sweet potatoes. Depending on how much you processed the sweet potatoes, this custard mixture may have some chunks of sweet potato, which is OK.
8 eggs, 2 cups granulated sugar, 2 cups heavy cream, 2 cups half and half, 15 ounces pumpkin puree, 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
Pour custard mixture into bowl of torn bread pieces and use a spoon or rubber spatula to mix and spread the mixture until all pieces of bread are evenly coated.
Bake Bread Pudding: Transfer to oblong baking pan and smooth top of mixture with spoon or spatula until it is relatively flat and even. Place pan in oven to bake for about an hour and thirty minutes.
Make the Praline Sauce: While the bread pudding bakes, melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat.
1 cup unsalted butter
Add brown sugar and cream and stir until mixture is uniform. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 5-10 minutes in order to allow sauce to thicken. Remove from heat and stir in pecans.
2 cups brown sugar, 1 cup heavy cream, 1 ½ cup pecan halves
When ready to serve, you can either spoon the sauce all over the bread pudding before cutting or ladle it on the individual portions. Both ways work fine but the first is easiest with a large crowd.

Notes

Preparation

You can fully prep this dish ahead of time by tearing up your bread and storing it in a sealed container until ready to go. Make the praline sauce up to a week ahead, and store in the fridge. You can even mix the custard up and chill it until go time--up to 48 hours.

Modifications

Canned Yams - You can use canned sweet potatoes as a shortcut since they won't need to be roasted. I recommend reducing the sugar in the recipe by half since canned sweet potatoes are typically already heavily sweetened.

Storage

Store in an airtight container--with or without praline sauce--and refrigerate. Keeps for up to four days.

To freeze, cool the bread pudding to room temperature, and don't add the praline sauce to it. Cut the pudding into serving-size portions, and wrap each one in plastic wrap, then again in foil. Place the wrapped pieces into an airtight, freezer-safe container or large zip-top bag. Keeps for up to two months. To reheat, thaw in the fridge overnight, then reheat in the microwave for up to one minute.

Adapted from the Flavor Mosaic's Pumpkin Praline Bread Pudding

Nutrition