Want to add moisture and flavor to your bread pudding? This Vanilla Sauce for Bread Pudding is the perfect addition to your classic bread pudding, and truly, any dessert that needs some extra moisture!
It’s easy to make, easy to adapt to make dairy-free, and customizable to tailor to your desired consistency and sweetness level.
Serve it over this Bread Pudding or make a completely vegan dessert by opting for the dairy-free version and serving it over this Vegan Bread Pudding!
The easiest way to moisten bread pudding is to add a sauce once it is out of the oven. And as a busy mom with limited time in the kitchen, I love a simple sauce that can totally elevate a dessert with just one pour!
While this Vanilla Sauce for Bread Pudding was designed to add both moisture and flavor to any bread pudding, this quick and easy vanilla sauce is so versatile, it can really amplify any dessert.
It will add sweetness, subtle notes of vanilla, and most importantly moisture! Pour it over loaf cake, brownies, or even cookies!
Vanilla Sauce for Bread Pudding Ingredient Highlights
Heavy cream and any percentage milk OR coconut cream and coconut milk work great. Granulated sugar works best in this recipe.
You can opt for vanilla bean pasta in place of vanilla extract for deeper flavor.
Vanilla Sauce for Bread Pudding Tips and Tricks
Dissolve the Sugar First
First, add your milk, cream, and granulated sugar to a saucepan over medium heat. Stir to dissolve the sugar over the heat.
Continue to heat and stir until there are no more grainy-sugar crystals and you have a smooth sauce.
Make Sure There Are No Lumps
Next, it’s time to add your cornstarch. We are using cornstarch here as a thickening agent.
It’s important to whisk and combine so there are no lumps of cornstarch left behind.
Continue to heat and stir until there are no visible lumps.
Allow it to Thicken
Cornstarch will start to thicken your sauce once the temperature reaches around 295°F. The longer you heat it, the thicker it will get.
For a thinner sauce, heat and stir until you get a glue-like consistency. If you’re looking for a thicker sauce, continue to heat until the sauce resembles a thick batter—almost like a pancake batter.
Once your sauce thickens, whisk in your vanilla extract. Assess the consistency, and heat a little bit more if you want it thicker.
Allow It To Cool
Transfer your sauce to a bowl or pitcher to cool.
As it cools, it sets.
How to Properly Store and Reheat Vanilla Sauce
This sauce is delicious on pretty much every dessert you can think of! And the best part—it’ll last up to 4 weeks in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
You can also opt to freeze the sauce for up to 3 months. To thaw, transfer to your refrigerator and allow to defrost overnight.
My preferred reheating method is on the stove, as it gives you more control over the temperature and allows you to watch the sauce as the heat rises.
Add the leftover vanilla cream sauce to a saucepan over medium heat. Stir frequently, and as soon as you’re happy with the temperature, remove it from the heat.
You can also reheat the sauce in the microwave. Start with 30 seconds on high, then stir. Continue to heat in 15 second intervals, stirring in between until you’re happy with the temperature.
Quick 15-Minute Vanilla Sauce for Bread Pudding
SAVE RECIPE TO COLLECTION PIN PRINT RATEIngredients
- ¼ cup milk (cows or coconut)
- ½ cup heavy cream (or coconut cream)
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Over medium heat, add milk, cream, and sugar to a large saucepan. Heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved.¼ cup milk, ½ cup heavy cream, ½ cup granulated sugar
- Add your cornstarch and whisk until there are no visible lumps. Continue to heat, stirring frequently, until your sauce thickens (cornstarch will start to thicken sauce once it reaches 295°F).1 tablespoon cornstarch
- Add your vanilla extract and stir to combine. Assess the consistency. To thicken, continue to heat. If you are happy with the thickness, remove it from heat.1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- Transfer sauce to a small bowl or pitcher to cool. Enjoy over bread pudding, brownies, loaf cake, and more!
Pro Tips
- For a thinner sauce, heat and stir until the consistency resembles glue before moving on to step 3.
- For a thicker sauce, continue to heat until the sauce resembles pancake batter.
24 thoughts on “Quick 15-Minute Vanilla Sauce for Bread Pudding”
hello,
do you think this could be used as a layer between cakes? I am making a mini-vanilla cake and wanted to have a vanilla pudding layer in the middle.
Maybe if i go with the thicker version i am thinking.
what are your thoughts?
Thanks!
Kate
Hi Kate!! I am so sorry for the delay in my response.
I’m not confident this will give you the effect you want in between cakes. It would be great to pour over a poke cake or smother on top tres leches style to add moisture to a cake, but I fear it will sink in too much and not hold up to the weight of the layers, even if you make the thicker version. I hope this helps!
I am going to have to substitute the heavy whipping cream for either Caramel.macchiato coffee creamer or sugar free French vanilla.
I think I will opt for the caramel macchioto.. we will see..
Yum!! Let me know how it turns out! You may want to reduce the amount of sugar a bit to compensate so it’s not overly sweet 🙂
Hello, I understand I’m a late commenting. However I just noticed that you replied to someone else’s comment saying the recipe does actually call for a half a cup of sugar. Yet, it still says 1 1/2 cups of sugar. I was 10 minutes away from making this and luckily checked out a few comments. Please fix this..thank you,Teresa
Hi Teresa!! So sorry for any confusion. I don’t see where it says 1 1/2 cups sugar. Can you please clarify? I’m looking at the recipe and the ingredient shot and both say 1/2 cup. Am I missing something?
Hi was just wondering if you can reheat this sauce?
Hi Nicci!
Absolutely! I usually reheat mine in a saucepan over low heat, whisking frequently, but you can also do so in the microwave, covered, in 30-second intervals stirring in between. If it seems too thick, just add a little bit of extra milk as you heat until you are happy with the consistency. 🙂
Best bread pudding and vanilla sauce EVER! Super easy as well! Thanks for sharing with us!!
I am SO GLAD you enjoyed, Cindy!! Sometimes you just can’t beat the classics 🙂
A win is a win. Awesome sauce!
Me over here smothering it all over everything So glad you loved it! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave your feedback!
Easy and delicious. We used it to go with a 100-year-old (or more) grandmother’s recipe for bread pudding. Only change I made was taking a couple tablespoons from step 1 into a small dish with the cornstarch to dissolve it. Then, poured that into the saucepan. Thus, no lumps. We’re saving this to make again.
I’m so glad you loved it! There’s truly nothing better than grandmas family recipes. Genius to make a slurry for the cornstarch! 🙂
At the beginning of the recipe it says 1 c. Sugar and at the end it says 1/2 c. Sugar. Which is it?
Hi there! So sorry for the confusion! 1/2 cup granulated sugar is correct! Thank you so much for pointing that out- I will update the ingredient photo today when I get to my desk 🙂
Good recipe
Thank you, Jerry! So glad you liked it.
Awesome
So glad you loved it! 🙂
Simple, reliable, versatile, and delicious. What’s not to like?
So glad you like it, Sue! Everything is better with sauce
This is DELICIOUS!! We used it for a fresh blackberry bread pudding we made last night and everyone raved about them both. This vanilla cream sauce is like the kind I get at a local restaurant (Kneaders) and I couldn’t be happier about that! 🙂 Thank you for sharing your recipe.
I’m soooo glad you enjoyed!! This stuff is dangerous to have around– I pour it over everything! You’ve officially inspired me to try it over blackberry bread pudding next 🙂