This easy, delicious, homemade hot cross bun pudding is a twist on the classic bread and butter pudding but made with leftover hot cross buns. A fantastic addition to the Easter weekend celebrations and recipe ideas. This decadent dessert can be served with ice cream, cream, custard and a side of fresh berries.
The shelves of every bakery and supermarket are stocked with hot cross buns. These sweet spiced fruit buns are a staple in the Easter season across South Africa, the UK, New Zealand, Australia, Ireland and Canada.
Traditionally hot cross buns are served on Good Friday to mark the end of Lent, however, they usually start popping up on the shelves not long after Valentine's Day.
Because I live in the Southern Hemisphere, I equate Easter with shorter days and cooler weather. Which makes a hot cross bun bread and butter pudding even more fitting on the cool Autumn evenings. Especially if you have some extra buns after the Easter weekend.
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What You Need for this Recipe
Equipment
This pudding or dessert requires a ceramic or glass baking dish about 15cmx25cm big, taking approximately 2L.
Ingredient Notes
Here are some notes on the ingredients used in this recipe. Please see the recipe card for quantities.
- Hot cross buns - 6 hot cross buns of any variety.
- Butter to butter the buns in this bun and butter or bread and butter pudding.
- Brown sugar to add sweetness to the pudding. In a pinch, caster or granulated white sugar can be used.
- Cream (heavy or whipping cream), milk and eggs for the custard base of this pudding.
- Vanilla to add a little flavour to the custard.
- Zest of an orange/lemon to cut through the richness a bit.
- Ice cream, pouring cream or custard to serve the pudding with.
- Fresh berries for serving - I like to serve rich puddings with some fresh berries.
Making Hot Cross Bun Pudding
Step 1 - Slice the hot cross buns open and butter the top and bottom halves of the buns.
Step 2 - In a large mixing bowl or jug whisk together the milk, cream, eggs, vanilla and sugar until the sugar is dissolved.
Step 3 - Stir through the zest of an orange and set aside.
Step 4 - Place the buns into the desired baking dish and slowly fill the dish with the milk mixture. Allow the buns to absorb the liquids for 45 minutes.
Step 5 - Preheat the oven to 170°C/340F. Place the pudding dish inside a large roaster and fill halfway with water. Cover the pudding with tinfoil or aluminium foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for a further 25 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the centre just slightly jiggly.
Step 6 - Remove the pudding dish from the roaster and allow to cool for 15 minutes before serving with pouring cream, ice cream, custard and fresh berries.
Pro Tips for this Recipe
Weighing Ingredients
Weighing ingredients is more accurate than measuring cups overall, and this is my recommendation for my recipes as they are all developed and tested using grams only.
However, I have activated the grams-to-cup conversions on the recipe card. Simply click on "cups" underneath the ingredient list. For these conversions, cups are equal to 236mL/8 fluid ounces, tablespoons are 15mL and teaspoons are 5mL.
Measuring cups and spoons are an essential addition to every kitchen! Especially if you don't use a kitchen scale. Invest in a set to ensure you add the correct ingredients for accurate measuring. When in doubt - always use a level spoon or cup measure.
The temperatures stated are for conventional ovens. For convection, fan-forced, fan-assisted, or air-fryers, the temperature must be reduced by 20°C/25°F, or the gas mark by 1.
For best baking results invest in an oven thermometer, as the temperature dials on the oven may not be accurate.
Bakeware: Metal bakeware is superior when it comes to baking biscuits, cookies, brownies, muffins and quick bread, scones, cakes. These heat up and cool down faster than glassware. Glassware is heavier, heats up and cools down slower than metal and is more suited for bread puddings, pies, crisps, crumbles and cobblers.
All my recipes are currently tested at sea level.
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📖 Recipe
Hot Cross Bun and Butter Pudding
Ingredients
- 6 Hot Cross Buns
- 40 grams butter
- 300 mL cream (heavy or whipping cream)
- 300 mL whole milk
- 3 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 60 grams brown sugar (can use granulated or caster)
- zest of an orange
- ice-cream, cream or custard (for serving)
- fresh berries (for serving)
Instructions
- Slice the hot cross buns open and butter the top and bottom halves of the buns.6 Hot Cross Buns, 40 grams butter
- In a large mixing bowl or jug whisk together the milk, cream, eggs, vanilla and sugar until the sugar is dissolved to make the custard that the buns will bake in.300 mL cream, 300 mL whole milk, 3 large eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla, zest of an orange, 60 grams brown sugar
- Stir through the zest of an orange and set aside.zest of an orange
- Place the buns into the desired baking dish and slowly fill the dish with the milk mixure. Allow the buns to absorb the liquids for 45 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 170°C/340F. Place the pudding dish inside a large roaster and fill halfway with water. Cover the pudding with tinfoil or aluminium foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for a futher 25 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the centre just slightly jiggly.
- Remove the pudding dish from the roaster and allow to cool for 15 minutes before serving with pouring cream, ice-cream, custard and fresh berries.ice-cream, cream or custard, fresh berries
Nutrition
Nutrition information is an estimate, accuracy of nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.. If scaling the recipe remember to scale your cook and bakeware accordingly.
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