Sweet Potato Bread Pudding + Caramel Sauce (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
I’m really struggling right now not to have every new recipe I make feature pumpkin. When I set out to make a bread pudding earlier this week my initial thought was “It’s October so I should add pumpkin, duh!” but with so many pumpkin recipes coming up on the blog (get ready!) I decided to go with sweet potato instead. For most recipes I find that pumpkin and sweet potato can be pretty interchangeable in recipes anyways, so if you are also suffering from October pumpkin fever you can feel free to use pumpkin in place of sweet potato in the recipe.
That said, I am SO excited about how today’s Sweet Potato Bread Pudding with Caramel Sauce turned out- it feels like the epitome of an autumn dessert. I’ve been racking my brain to remember the last time I actually ate bread pudding and I think it might have been before my vegan and gluten-free days!
This bread pudding is a serious comfort food. Served warm, it’s ooey goey on the inside and perfectly crisp on the outside. The caramel sauce adds a little extra flavor but I also think a scoop of vanilla coconut ice cream would be perfect on top.
I used leftover bread from a recipe I’ve been testing (and will share soon!) and I would recommend using bread that’s a few days past it’s prime and a little crispy. The recipe calls for pureed sweet potato. I made a puree by baking a medium-sized sweet potato at 425° for 45 minutes, then removing the skin and blending it.
- 1 tsp coconut oil
- 2 cups bread cubes (cubes about ½" thick)
- 1 cup pureed sweet potato
- ½ cup non-dairy milk (I used unsweetened almond)
- 1 tbs vegan butter (I used Earth Balance Buttery Spread)
- 2 tbs maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
- ⅛ tsp salt
- For the caramel sauce- 6 dates, 1 tbs coconut oil, ¼ cup water, 1 tbs maple syrup, dash of salt
- Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 4" springform pan or glass dish with coconut oil.
- Combine sweet potato, milk, butter, maple syrup, vanilla extract, pumpkin pie spice and salt in blender until smooth.
- Transfer to a large bowl and stir in bread cubes. Let mixture sit for at least 15 minutes.
- Use a spoon to pack mixture into springform pan. Bake for 30-25 minutes until edges are firm and golden.
- While pudding bakes, prepare caramel sauce by blending all sauce ingredients together until smooth. Warm in small saucepan on stove.
- Let pudding sit until cool enough to handle (but still warm), slice into pieces and serve with sauce.
YUM! I love bread pudding, I love sweet potato, and I love caramel. This looks AMAAAAZING! Oh my goodness.