Have some leftover dinner bread in the house? A savory spinach artichoke bread pudding is a great way to use that up! Some milk, some eggs, vegetables, and cheese mixed with the bread will give you a great side dish. This isn’t a quick dish, but it’s easy to assemble and can be made ahead to be baked later.
Hello, all!
Recently I had some leftover dinner bread in the house and was thinking of what to make with it.
A wintery bread salad? Some bruschetta? Ribollita (Italian Bread Soup)? All good choices, but I decided I was in the mood for bread pudding. Since it was a rosemary bread, a sweet bread pudding wasn’t going to work for me.
However, I did have all the ingredients for spinach artichoke dip, and combining bread pudding with spinach artichoke dip seemed like a tasty idea. I figured, why not? So, I pulled out a can of artichokes and grabbed some spinach out of the freezer and looked to see what cheese I had, and this bread pudding was soon in a casserole dish.
The first time I used mozzarella, since it was what was in the fridge, but that was a little bland. All the other flavors were tasty, but the cheese wasn’t bringing it. When I made it again my husband suggested brie, and that worked! One more time for photos, and here we are.
If you’re thinking ‘savory bread pudding? that’s weird,’ I would like to remind of the other name for savory bread pudding.
Stuffing.
Okay, stuffing, like my awesome Sausage Bread Stuffing, doesn’t usually contain milk, but rather stock of some sort. However, bread + eggs + mix-ins + liquid all baked together in the oven and we are talking something pretty similar. Something that is not just for Thanksgiving and other holidays!
While the flavors were inspired by spinach artichoke dip, don’t expect quite the creamy, gooeyness of that dip.
This is a bread pudding and the bread is going to absorb the liquid. If it doesn’t, you end up with a soggy mess. Not good! That means you do need to balance the ingredients and not add too much liquid. However, you do get the lovely flavors of the brie along with the spinach and the artichoke and the top layer of bread gets all golden brown and crispy.
And that is all good. š
If you try my recipe for Spinach Artichoke Bread Pudding, I would love to hear from you in the comments with your experience and rating! And Iām happy to answer any questions you might have.
– Happy Eating, Annemarie
Spinach Artichoke Bread Pudding
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp softened butter
- 6 oz stale bread, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes
- 4 oz chopped frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
- 1 14-oz can artichokes, drained and chopped
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 2 large eggs
- 8 oz brie, diced
- 1 oz parmesan, shredded
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- Grease a 9x9 high sided casserole dish.
- In a large bowl, mix together the bread, spinach, and artichokes.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the milk, sour cream, and eggs until well blended.
- Pour the egg custard into the bread mixture and toss to combine. Mix in about 6 oz of the brie and the parmesan.
- Transfer the bread pudding to the prepared casserole dish and dot the top with the remaining pieces of brie.
- Cover the dish with foil and let it sit on the counter for 30 minutes to hydrate the bread.
- Bake covered for 45 minutes. Then uncover and bake for 10 minutes.
Notes
- Make ahead: If you are making this ahead, prepare the bread pudding through step 3. It can refrigerated overnight. Allow it to come to room temperature before putting it in the oven. Note: I've found it to be helpful to use a digital thermometer to check the center of the pudding when I've gone the 'make-ahead' route just to make sure it was cooked through. The pudding should be around 160F when it's done.
Erin says
Oh this is a genius idea! I love bread pudding and my Hub’s loves stuffing, but there’s only so much Stove Top a person can eat… And I love the Brie. The same gooey stretchiness of mozz with waaayyy more flavor. This is awesome Annemarie!
justalittlebitofbacon says
Thank you! I’m always thinking of ways to use up leftover bread and savory bread pudding seemed like a good idea to me. š
Cathy says
You had me at bread pudding! I think stuffing should be it’s own food group so a savory bread pudding is way up my alley. Love your play on spinach artichoke dip here – so smart and delish!!
justalittlebitofbacon says
Savory bread pudding isn’t something I’ve made much and now I’m wondering why since I’m completely with you on stuffing. š
simonacallas says
You know, I’ve never ate artichoke but I’m wondering how it tastes. This recipe is a great opportunity to try artichokes š Looks very delicious. Thank you for sharing ā¤
justalittlebitofbacon says
Thanks! And I hope you try artichoke soon! We love them a lot. I made boiled artichokes with lemon butter recently. Easy and tasty.