“He has made everything beautiful in its time. . .” Ecclesiastes 3:11

If you are looking for a festive but easy dessert for the holiday season, Cranberry Eggnog Bread Pudding is the perfect dessert.  Not only does it take minutes to prepare, it’s absolutely delicious.  

It’s thought to believe that Bread Pudding originated from England.  Bread pudding can be sweet or savory, using a variety of ingredients but always the main ingredient being stale bread, of course.

When thinking about this recipe, I wanted to use ingredients that were seasonal to Christmas.  Also, liking bread pudding as I do, I thought I could make some shortcuts so that this recipe would be easy.  Since eggnog has the main ingredients to a basic bread pudding custard, I decided to try it.  It works.  I used already prepared eggnog but feel free to use your own if you have leftovers.

I know that the melted vanilla ice cream seems odd, but to be honest, it works.  It adds just the right sweetness to go with the tartness of the cranberries and the spiciness of the custard.  Think of it as an easy Creme Anglaise.

Mama Fawn’s Tips. . .

• When toasting the pecans, make sure you keep a watch on them or they can burn quickly.
• It’s better to use day-old (or older bread) for this recipe.  The fresher the bread makes the pudding a little soggy.
• Feel free to substitute rum extract or rum to make it more ‘festive’ 😉
• If you don’t like pecans, you can use any type of nut you desire.

Cranberry Eggnog Bread Pudding will be the perfect dessert at your holiday table.