Irish Bread Pudding is a savoury bread pudding. In honour of Saint Patrick's day, of course, I wanted to make something Irish. In a quest to find something outside of the obvious, I found this recipe for Irish Cheese Pudding, and just had to try it. It's full of cheese, and it has beer. You can't go wrong with that, right? I've adapted it way beyond the original, but it somehow worked out beautifully.
About Irish Cheese Making
The Irish have a long history of farmhouse cheese making, and it's still a thriving industry there today. Especially since the 1980s where the industry flourished as the dairy industry's response to the EU milk quotas that were imposed at that time. Read more about Irish cheese-making here: How Ireland Built a Cheese Movement.
And Then There's The Beer
This savoury bread pudding was a way to use up stale bread. And of course, there's the beer. I was able to come across a dry Irish stout craft beer, perfect for this recipe. Guinness is the most famous, but there is a big selection of dark beers to be found easily.
Irish bread pudding is traditionally made with soda bread, but I loved using sourdough here, instead. The flavours of sharp cheddar and a dark Irish stout, along with the sourdough, are perfect together. I added caramelized onions for a touch of sweetness to complement the bitter stout.
Sourdough Bread Loves Beer
There aren't a lot of ingredients in this dish, so the important thing is to use a quality, aged, sharp cheddar and a good, dark beer. The sourdough bread should be good, too. A lot of the "sourdough" factory bread is not really sourdough but has a sour flavouring. If you love sourdough, you will know from one taste if it isn't real. It's easy to find the real thing, since most grocery stores have in-store bakeries, and of course any bakery will have it.
Toast Your Bread First
For this recipe, fresh bread just doesn't work. Unless you oven toast it, which is even better than using stale bread, and you don't have to wait for it to stale. Toasting will give you the best texture for the bread pudding.
This dish is perfect for brunch, or lunch. Kind of like a beer flavoured grilled cheese. But in a bowl. Want more Irish? Try Irish Soda Bread, Irish Beef & Guinness Stew or Slow Cooker Corned Beef and Cabbage
Irish Bread Pudding – Savoury Bread Pudding
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon butter
- 1 medium onion thinly sliced
- 1 sourdough loaf cut into cubes and oven toasted
- 4 cups aged sharp cheddar cheese grated
- 4 eggs beaten
- 2 cups dark beer
- 1 cup half & half
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 tablespoon mustard
- ¼ cup chopped parsley
Instructions
- In a skillet, heat oil over medium-high.
- Add butter, heating until butter is slightly foaming
- Add onion slices, stirring to coat with oil, then spread in an even layer.
- Reduce heat to medium, and cook onions for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until brown and caramelized.
- Reduce heat to low and allow to sit while you assemble the pudding
- Preheat oven to 350° Butter an 8" casserole dish
- Put bread cubes in an even layer on a baking sheet and put into the oven for 15 minutes to toast, while you continue with the recipe.
- In a medium bowl, combine eggs, beer, cream, cayenne and mustard
- Remove onions from heat. In the casserole dish, toss together the toasted bread cubes, 3 cups of the cheese, and onions, spreading evenly.
- Pour beer mixture over the bread mixture. With a spoon, make sure all the bread is combined with the liquid
- Bake 45 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean, and the top is golden and crisp
- Spread remaining 1 cup cheese over the top. Bake 5 minutes more, until cheese is just melted.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with parsley.
Notes
Nutrition
Fi
Is there a way to do this without eggs? Sonds amazing but allergic to eggs.thanks..
Colleen
Hi Fi, Yes! There absolutely is. I've never tried this savory bread pudding with this, but, I recently posted some muffins that I made with a "flax egg" https://www.thefoodblog.net/banana-blueberry-spelt-muffins/ You simply combine a tbsp of ground flaxseed with 3 tbsp of water, let it sit for 5 minutes or so, and it becomes a glutenous mass, just like an egg. It makes a perfect egg substitute! Please let me know if you try this and how it turned out for you.
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I think that last line might be the best one - 'like a beer flavoured grilled cheese in a bowl.' I mean c'mon, that sounds AWESOME. I love the idea of a savoury bread pudding (especially as a self-confessed carb addict). And the tip about toasting the fresh bread is a good one to keep in mind!
Colleen
Ha, ha, right? You can't go wrong with grilled cheese and beer. And this is really just seriously yummy! Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Dana
Ohhhhhh my goodness. Colleen. Okay. So. I'm a savory over sweet girl, thought I always enjoyed my Grandma's bread pudding. So when I initially saw this post, I figured it was a good ol' bread pudding recipe. But this… this is magical. I mean, onions, beer, and cheese!? This is even better than stuffing! I seriously *NEED* to make this. Thanks so much for sharing!
Colleen
Hey Dana! I am also more savory than sweet, ha ha. This really was a great combo that I will be making again. Thanks for commenting!
Karly
Get in my bellay. Seriously, this stuff looks INCREDIBLE! I've never tried anything like it, but holy cow do I need to. Droolin' like a fool over here!
Colleen
Ha Ha. Thanks Karly! It's ridiculously good 🙂