Pineapple + Coconut = Love

Pina coladas; A classic tropical drink known by many. I happen to love them. However, I only drink alcohol on rare or special occasions now. It’s February and I had one thing on the brain (besides a pina colada!) ; The warmth of the summer sun.

Almost the entire month of January was cold and cloudy. There is some sun lately, but growing up in the desert, I love my heat! With all this idealization of sun and summer, I definitely thought to bring a bit of tropics to me. This is what inspired the Pina Colada Bread Pudding.

Bread Pudding – a classic

Bread pudding is definitely an old school dessert in my book. When I make this dessert in the restaurant, many of the older clientele can relate how this dessert brings them back to being a kid-which I love.

It should also be noted this is a beloved dessert because it’s easy and cheap to make. Now, this recipe is slightly fancier than traditional bread puddings, it’s still a great way to use up that extra or going stale loaf!

Secret to the BEST Bread Pudding!

One of the best secrets I know to having the moistest, ooey, gooey, delectable bread puddings is to soak the bread overnight!

Soaking the bread overnight allows the custard mixture and flavors to fully immerse into your bread. Have you ever had bread pudding that was super dry? It’s possible they did not soak the bread long enough.

The flavors are incomparable between an overnight soak bread pudding versus one soaked for a few hours. The pina colada bread pudding has a great mixture of each flavor so it’s a nice balance of coconut to pineapple.

Another secret to a delectable, irresistible bread pudding is the bread itself. Now it’s perfectly fine to use up that old loaf but if making this recipe for a special occasion (because yes, this bread pudding is THAT good) you may want to be selective about your bread choice.

Choosing the right bread

Like I said, use that old loaf there is nothing wrong with that…at.all. BUT if you want to up your bread game try this recipe with brioche or the Hawaiian dinner rolls! Those are my top two suggestions but if you watched my video, I use Texas toast.

You don’t have to cut the bread up either. Feel free to use just your hands to tear the bread into nice even cubes. Having the cubes of bread close in size helps for an even texture throughout your bread pudding. Otherwise, you could have a few soggier and/or drier spots in your pudding.

Overnight Payoff

Referencing back to soaking our bread puddings overnight, feel free to try one soaked for a few hours versus waiting. Not saying the dessert wouldn’t be good, it just isn’t the same.

I never really appreciated bread pudding for all it’s possibilities until one day after a bunch of holiday banquets we had soft dinner rolls galore at the restaurant just sitting on the shelf. After being tired of staring at them with no real other use for them I got creative and thought about bread pudding for the very first time.

I looked up a few basic recipes and ended up settling for a classic. I unknowingly decided to soak the bread overnight because we got busy and time had run it’s course for the day.

Unsure of what to really expect, the next day I baked the dish off. The back hallway illuminated with strong aromas of cinnamon and nutmeg. It smelled like we were in a classic bakery or donut shop.

Soaking the bread overnight resulted in such a beautiful display of bread, sugar, and butter. The bread pudding has a souffle like texture from the overnight soak and that’s why I fell in love. Now I could really understand why this dish was a classic comfort from the past.

New takes on classic recipes are some of the dishes I really love to eat and create. Don’t underestimate these classic old school recipes. There’s a reason they’re beloved and still around for us to enjoy (and enhance).

I truly hope you enjoy this recipe and this tropical twist on a classic dessert. Try the pina colada bread pudding topped with my buttered rum sauce! It’s such a great pairing of flavors.

Happy cooking y’all.

-K