Wild Blueberry Croissant Bread Pudding with Wild Blueberry Vanilla Sauce
Croissants make a terrific base for bread pudding because those buttery, flaky layers readily absorb custard while the exposed edges brown and crisp during the cook. Wild blueberries bring tart berry flavor throughout the pudding, with their smaller size putting blueberries into nearly every bite without overwhelming the croissants.
I cooked this version on a pellet smoker at 350°F using cherry wood. The cherry adds a light smoke character around the browned croissant edges and blueberries without turning the dessert into something heavily smoked. An oven at the same temperature works just fine if you don't want to fire up the smoker.
Frozen wild blueberries go straight into the pudding without thawing. Since they release quite a bit of juice as they cook, I reduced the whole milk to 2 cups. That amount gave me the texture I wanted, with a custard that was completely set but still soft and moist inside.
The Wild Blueberry Vanilla Sauce uses the berries a second time. Butter, cream, sugar, wild blueberries, and vanilla bean paste create a rich sauce that gets blended and strained until smooth enough to pour over the warm pudding
Cherry Wood Smoked Croissant Bread Pudding with Wild Blueberries
8
45 minutes
1 hours 15 minutes
491
Amercian
Dessert
The texture is what makes croissants work so well in this bread pudding. The custard works its way between the flaky layers, giving you a soft, rich interior while the pieces exposed at the surface become deeply golden and lightly crisp. Frozen wild blueberries soften during baking and release their juices directly into those layers without completely disappearing into the custard.
Reducing the whole milk to 2 cups accounts for some of that additional moisture. The goal is a bread pudding that is fully set but still tender and custardy inside, not one with liquid pooling around the bottom.
The sauce uses wild blueberries a second way. As they simmer with butter, sugar, brown sugar, and cream, the berries break down and give the sauce a deep blueberry flavor and color. Blending it with an immersion blender and then pressing it through a fine-mesh strainer removes the skins and remaining solids. Vanilla bean paste goes in after the sauce has cooled slightly, leaving you with a smooth, glossy sauce that clings to each warm piece of bread pudding.
Ingredients
Wild Blueberry Croissant Bread Pudding
- 6 large day-old croissants, torn or cut into pieces, about 8 cups
- 1 1/2 cups frozen wild blueberries, do not thaw
- 2 cups whole milk
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Wild Blueberry Vanilla Sauce
- 1 1/4 cups frozen wild blueberries
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
Directions
- Preheat the Pellet Smoker: Preheat the pellet smoker to 350°F using cherry wood pellets. If using an oven, preheat it to 350°F.
- Prepare the Baking Dish: Butter a 9 x 9-inch baking dish.
- Arrange the Croissants: Place the croissant pieces evenly in the prepared baking dish. Scatter the frozen wild blueberries throughout the croissants, working some of the berries down between the pieces rather than leaving them all on the surface.
- Mix the Custard: Whisk together the whole milk, granulated sugar, eggs, melted butter, vanilla bean paste, cinnamon, and nutmeg until thoroughly combined.
- Add the Custard: Pour the custard evenly over the croissants and blueberries. Gently press the croissants into the custard so the layers absorb the liquid without being compressed.
- Soak the Croissants: Let the bread pudding rest for 30 minutes before cooking.
- Cook the Bread Pudding: Place the baking dish on the pellet smoker and cook uncovered at 350°F for 1 hour. Rotate the baking dish 180 degrees after 30 minutes to promote even cooking. The bread pudding is ready when the exposed croissant pieces are deeply golden brown, the custard is set, and the center reaches approximately 160°F.
- Use the Oven Method: If using an oven, bake uncovered at 350°F for approximately 1 hour, until the top is golden brown, the custard is set, and the center reaches approximately 160°F. Rotate the baking dish halfway through cooking if your oven has noticeable hot spots.
- Rest the Bread Pudding: Remove the bread pudding from the pellet smoker or oven and let it rest for 15 minutes before cutting. This gives the hot custard time to settle while keeping the interior soft and moist.
- Cook the Blueberry Sauce: Add the frozen wild blueberries, butter, heavy whipping cream, granulated sugar, and light brown sugar to a medium saucepan. Cook over medium to medium-low heat, stirring frequently as the butter melts and the blueberries release their juices.
- Reduce the Sauce: Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until the blueberries are completely softened and beginning to break apart and the sauce has started to thicken.
- Add the Vanilla Bean Paste: Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the vanilla bean paste.
- Blend the Sauce: Carefully blend the warm sauce with an immersion blender until the blueberries are completely broken down and the sauce is smooth.
- Strain the Sauce: Press the warm sauce through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean bowl. Discard the blueberry skins, seeds, and remaining solids.
Serve: Cut the bread pudding into 8 servings and spoon the warm Wild Blueberry Vanilla Sauce generously over each serving. Serve additional sauce alongside for anyone who wants more.
