Hot Cross Buns Bread and Butter Pudding – an Easter Recipe

Hot Cross Buns Bread and Butter Pudding Recipe – a great way to use up leftover hot cross buns.

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Hot Cross Buns Bread and Butter Pudding

I have a thing about bread and butter pudding. There is just something about dipping into layers of custard soaked bread overflowing with a fruity aroma. I have very clear memories of my mum making bread and butter pudding on her days off whenever we had old bread to use up. I loved it then and I love it now!

Sometime in the 90s, when I first started making panettone for Christmas, I had a lightbulb moment and ended up making Panettone Bread and Butter Pudding with an extra loaf. That has now become a family tradition every Christmas season. We still have Christmas Pudding for dessert on Christmas Day, so the Panettone pudding gets made sometime between then and New Year’s eve, a couple of times, as we almost always have an Open House during the holiday season.

And as I’ve used all sorts of breads and bread-like items to make the pudding over the years, it was really just a matter of time before this Hot Cross Buns Bread and Butter Pudding came into being. I wish I could shorten that to Hot Cross Buns Pudding, but I don’t think the name will carry as much meaning. What do you think?

We make hot cross buns every year, just for the fun of it, although only my oldest and I eat them. I use an old family recipe that I found in my father-in-law’s cache of family recipes, mainly from his mum. However, although I’d planned to post about it a while ago, I’ve still not done it! So, for this recipe, you’ll just have to get shop bought ones, which, let’s face it, will be so much more convenient.

So there’s no rocket science involved with today’s recipe, especially if you’re buying the hot cross buns! All we do is slice, butter and layer the buns, pour custard all over, and bake. Then we finish with a flourish of caramelised sugar and that’s it, we’re done. I finish all my bread and butter pudding that way, after coming across Gary Rhodes doing it years ago. The burnt sugar lends an amazing layer of flavour, I can’t eat bread and butter pudding without it!

Custard

Bread and butter puddings always taste better with homemade custard, which is a very quick and easy thing to do with eggs, cream, milk and vanilla. You’ll find my recipe here. However, if you would like to use shop bought custard, don’t use the stuff that comes in boxes. Get the fresh ones that come in plastic tubs and are stocked in the fridge section. Those are just like homemade custard.

Dried Fruit

In this Hot Cross Buns Bread and Butter Pudding recipe, I sprinkle a layer of dried fruit between the buns. I use raisins and some dried citrus peel. Use whatever you can get your hands on. However, what I really always use for the fruit is crumbled up leftover Christmas pudding. I always have 1 or 2 small Christmas puddings left over from Christmas and this is how I like using them, besides in trifles.

So, shop bought hot cross buns, shop bought custard maybe, this is going to be a walk in the park! Are you a fan of Bread and Butter Puddings?

Let’s get our aprons on!

If you like the recipe and article, don’t forget to leave me a comment and that all important, 5-star rating! Thank you!

And if you make the recipe, share it on any platform and tag me @azlinbloor, and hashtag it #linsfood.

Lin xx

Hot Cross Buns Bread and Butter Pudding

Hot Cross Buns Bread and Butter Pudding Recipe – a great way to use up leftover hot cross buns.
5 from 18 votes
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Course: Dessert
Cuisine: British
Keyword: christmas
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 6
Calories: 497kcal
Author: Azlin Bloor

Equipment

  • 1 loaf tin, measuring 23cm x 13cm (9" x 5")

Ingredients

  • 6 hot cross buns
  • butter as needed
  • 500 ml warm custard
  • 2 Tbsp raisins
  • 2 Tbsp dried mixed fruit
  • 1 Tbsp white or golden caster superfine sugar – not powdered/icing sugar

To Serve

  • More custard or cream, or ice cream
  • Any Fresh Fruit

Instructions

  • Melt a little of the butter and grease the loaf tin.
  • Slice the hot cross buns in half and butter them on the cut side.
  • Place a layer of the buns in the tin, overlapping slightly. You might have to break off a couple of the buns to fill up the small gap along the side. This does depend on how large/wide your buns are.
  • Sprinkle the fruit all over.
  • Pour about one third the warm custard all over this first layer.
  • Now top that with the rest of the hot cross buns, buttered side up. Pour the rest of the custard all over and press down with the back of the spoon. This is to allow the buns to absorb the custard. You’ll see bubbles coming up to the surface.
  • Leave the whole thing to rest for 30 minutes, and for the buns to get really soaked.
  • Towards the end of that time, heat the oven to 180˚ (350˚F). Fan ovens – 160˚C.
  • Bake the hot cross buns bread and butter pudding in the hot oven for 30 minutes, until the top is slightly golden and it’s browning at the edges.
  • Immediately, sprinkle the sugar all over. Now, if you have a kitchen blow torch, use that to caramelise the sugar all over. If you don't, place the whole lot under a hot grill (broiler) and grill for about 2-3 minutes until the sugar is brown and slightly burnt.
  • Let the pudding rest for 5 minutes, then slice up and serve, with extra custard, cream or ice cream, if you fancy.

Notes

Total time does not include baking the buns, nor making the custard.

Nutrition

Calories: 497kcal | Carbohydrates: 62g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 186mg | Sodium: 456mg | Potassium: 247mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 872IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 173mg | Iron: 1mg
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26 thoughts on “Hot Cross Buns Bread and Butter Pudding – an Easter Recipe”

  1. Absolutely looks a yummy recipe, I would love to try this and I bet my family would love this

  2. Looks amazing! I don’t think we have hot cross buns though. Is there another kind of bread that can be used for this?

  3. I have never tried this before, but it looks delicious! I love finding new things to try and this is now on my list, thank you!

  4. This looks amazing! I love new ways to do classic recipes! Easter is coming up; I think I will make this for my family dinners dessert.

  5. Josselyn Radillo

    It looks soooo delicious! Cant wait to try this recipe. My mama would love this in Easter!

  6. These look so delicious. They would be perfect to serve for dessert for my Easter brunch Sunday.

  7. Very cool twist on a classic. If I wasn’t forced to bake 800 different Slovak treats every year, I would try this one! Maybe next year 🙂

  8. Elizabeth O.

    Those are lovely. I’ve always liked pudding because they’re easy to make, you just have to put everything together in one tray and that’s it. This looks so good and perfect for Easter brunch!

  9. Awesome! Just in time for the long weekend coming. I’ll show my wife this, she always gets nervous when my mother comes to visit (don’t tell her I said that). We’ll serve this for pudding. Thanks!

  10. Sarah Waters

    My goodness, what an inspirational recipe! It just makes perfect sense to make this at Easter, doesn’t it? I will make this on the weekend for the visiting family. With shop bought hot cross buns! Thank you Lin!

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