Irish Soda Bread Pudding with Irish Liqueur Caramel

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day (or honestly any day) with this Irish Soda Bread Pudding! Caramel sauce is optional (but is it?), and this recipe includes some liqueur, which contains alcohol, but that should burn out while making the caramel (just in case that’s a concern). You can see a process video here!

To start, you can make your own soda bread (I like Sally’s recipe) or purchase it. The recipe below is for a whole loaf which uses a 9”x13” pan, but if you’re enjoying some fresh bread, you can divide the recipe based on how much bread you have left (typically the best part about making bread pudding is using stale/older bread and giving it a second life- and since it’s dried out a bit, it absorbs the custard really well). Half a loaf left? Divide the recipe in half and use an 8”x8” or 9”x9” pan and so on.

Ingredients:
1 loaf Irish Soda Bread (see notes above) cut into about 1” chunks (this should equal around 12 cups, volume over weight here is better since your recipe or bread’s weight might vary)
1,200ml whole milk
200g sugar
5 TBS (70g) unsalted butter
5 large eggs
vanilla (2 tsp or to taste)
dash of salt (optional)
For the caramel:
200g sugar
20g light corn syrup
2 TBS (30ml) water
70ml heavy cream
50ml Irish liqueur (if you don’t want to use liqueur, just substitute 50ml heavy cream)

In a medium sized pot over a low heat, add the milk, butter, and sugar. Whisk occasionally, just until the butter and sugar are fully melted (not looking for a boil or even a simmer).
Add any vanilla and salt and whisk to combine.
Remove from the heat and let cool until room temperature (or slightly above is ok too, as long as it’s not hot).
Meanwhile, crack and whisk the eggs. Once the milk mixture is cooled (so we don’t scramble the eggs), add the two together (in whichever vessel is bigger) and whisk until combined.
Grease a 9”x13” baking pan with butter.
Cut the soda bread into around 1” chunks (don’t have to be perfect).
Put the soda bread chunks into the pan, making sure to evenly distribute them and fill in any gaps.
Pour the milk and egg mixture over the bread in the pan, evenly pouring over all the bread (it will look like you’re drowning the bread in this mixture, that’s what you want). Let the bread soak in the mixture for at least 30 minutes (1 hour is ideal).
While the bread is soaking, preheat the oven to 350F.
Once your bread is soaked, bake on the middle rack of the oven for about 50 minutes (you don’t want the liquid to still be liquid, but a little jiggle is ok since the pan will continue to bake with residual heat once it’s out of the oven).
Allow to cool and enjoy while it’s warm or cover the pan with aluminum foil and refrigerate.

To make the caramel:
Add the sugar, water, and corn syrup to a small pot. Over a medium-low heat, stir the ingredients until the sugar begins to dissolve (then do not stir again).
Allow the sugar to boil until it becomes a deep amber color. Once it is, remove from the heat.
Slowly stream in the cream/liqueur while continuously whisking (there will be steam and bubbling, so be careful).
Once everything is incorporated, add the butter and whisk until melted in and smooth.
Pour into a glass jar or heat-proof container to cool a bit and serve!