This comforting Gluten Free Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding is made in an Instant Pot! With warm autumn spices, apples and a sweet vanilla sauce, this bread pudding is a delicious way to usher in a new season!
This recipe is courtesy of my friends, Jane Bonacci and Sara De Leeuw and their publisher, as they prepare to launch their new cookbook, The Gluten-Free Instant Pot Cookbook, on September 18.
Savor the Season: Easy Gluten-Free Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding in Your Instant Pot
As the leaves begin to turn and a crispness fills the air, there’s nothing quite like a warm, comforting dessert to welcome the autumn season. This Gluten-Free Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding, prepared effortlessly in your Instant Pot, is precisely that kind of treat. Infused with the quintessential flavors of fall—sweet apples, aromatic cinnamon, and a luscious vanilla sauce—it transforms humble bread into an extraordinary dessert experience.
For those navigating a gluten-free diet, finding truly satisfying desserts can sometimes be a challenge. That’s where this recipe shines, offering a rich, fluffy, and deeply flavorful bread pudding that caters to gluten sensitivities without compromising on taste or texture. The Instant Pot ensures a perfectly tender and moist pudding every time, making it an ideal choice for both seasoned gluten-free bakers and newcomers alike. This dessert isn’t just a treat; it’s a testament to how flavorful and convenient gluten-free cooking can be, especially when harnessing the power of a pressure cooker.
Mastering Gluten-Free Baking: Essential Tips for Delicious Desserts
Embracing a gluten-free lifestyle often comes with a learning curve, especially when it comes to baking. Having recently delved deeper into the nuances of gluten-free cooking due to a family member’s Celiac diagnosis, I’ve discovered several key principles that can elevate your gluten-free desserts from good to exceptional. While this bread pudding recipe is quite forgiving, these general tips are invaluable for expanding your gluten-free baking repertoire and ensuring consistently delicious results:
- Understanding Leavening Agents: Unlike traditional baking, gluten-free flours often require a slight adjustment in leavening. Gluten, present in wheat flour, provides structure and elasticity, trapping gas bubbles to help baked goods rise. When gluten is absent, you might need to increase the leavening agent (baking powder or baking soda) by approximately 25% when adapting a conventional recipe for gluten-free cookies or cakes. This boost helps compensate for the lack of gluten’s structural support, ensuring your treats achieve the desired lift and airy texture.
- The Power of Gluten-Free Flour Blends: Single gluten-free flours (like rice flour or almond flour) often don’t mimic wheat flour’s characteristics perfectly on their own. Wheat flour’s complex protein structure is hard to replicate. A well-balanced blend of different gluten-free flours, often combined with starches, yields far superior results. Many gluten-free friends highly recommend Cup4Cup, which is specifically formulated for easy substitution in equal amounts in many recipes. However, experimenting with different blends and ratios (such as adding one part starch to three parts gluten-free flour, as suggested by America’s Test Kitchen) can lead to breakthroughs in replicating the texture and consistency of traditional baked goods, giving them better crumb, chew, and overall mouthfeel.
- Vigilance with Ingredients and Cross-Contamination: Gluten can hide in unexpected places. Always double-check labels to ensure all your ingredients are certified gluten-free. For instance, in this bread pudding, it’s crucial to use gluten-free vanilla extract. While pure vanilla extract is generally gluten-free, some varieties may contain alcohol derived from grain, which could introduce small amounts of gluten. The same goes for oats: naturally gluten-free, but often processed in facilities that also handle wheat, leading to cross-contamination. Always opt for oats explicitly labeled “gluten-free” to avoid any risk. Be mindful of shared utensils, cutting boards, and even toasters when preparing gluten-free meals, especially if Celiac disease is a concern.
- Moisture is Key: Gluten-free flours tend to absorb more liquid than wheat flours, and gluten-free baked goods can often dry out faster. To counteract this, consider adding extra moisture to your recipes, such as more eggs, oil, pureed fruit (like applesauce), or even a little extra dairy. For a recipe like bread pudding, the generous custard base naturally provides ample moisture, ensuring a tender, rich, and incredibly satisfying crumb that won’t feel dry.
- Don’t Overmix: While overmixing is a concern in traditional baking due to the development of tough gluten strands, it can also negatively impact gluten-free doughs and batters. Overmixing can incorporate too much air, leading to a crumbly or tough texture in gluten-free goods. Mix just until ingredients are combined, respecting the delicate nature of gluten-free structures.
The Instant Pot Advantage: Revolutionizing Gluten-Free Cooking
The Instant Pot has undeniably transformed modern kitchens, making weeknight dinners and elaborate desserts surprisingly simple. Its resurgence in popularity is well-deserved, and for those on a gluten-free diet, it offers even more advantages. The controlled, moist environment of pressure cooking is particularly beneficial for gluten-free baked goods, which can sometimes dry out in a conventional oven. While many Instant Pot cookbooks abound, finding ones specifically dedicated to gluten-free recipes can be a treasure. This is precisely why “The Gluten-Free Instant Pot Cookbook” by Jane Bonacci and Sara De Leeuw is such a valuable resource.
This remarkable cookbook takes the guesswork out of adapting standard gluten-free recipes for pressure cooking, streamlining the process and ensuring consistent, delicious results. From decadent desserts like this Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding to New York Style Cheesecake, Double Chocolate Fudge Cheesecake, and Mexican Chocolate Pound Cake, the options are tantalizing. The Instant Pot creates a perfectly steamed environment, locking in moisture and ensuring an incredibly tender texture that’s hard to achieve otherwise. I’ve personally experienced the magic of the Instant Pot with their vanilla bean cheesecake, which turned out unbelievably creamy and rich. For this particular bread pudding, using Udi’s gluten-free cinnamon raisin bread creates a fantastic base, perfectly complementing the sweet, spiced custard. But the true star, for me, is always that sinfully smooth, caramelly vanilla sauce – it’s so good you’ll want to eat it by the spoonful!
Beyond Bread Pudding: More Instant Pot Culinary Adventures
During a recent kitchen remodel, my Instant Pot became my culinary MVP. It proved to be an invaluable tool when my main kitchen was out of commission, delivering impressive meals with minimal fuss. I absolutely adore how it intensifies flavors and tenderizes meats like chicken, beef, and pork in record time. The hands-off nature of pressure cooking allows you to focus on other tasks while your meal or dessert is perfectly cooked.
Beyond desserts, the Instant Pot has become a staple for a variety of dishes in my home. I’ve successfully made creamy Clotted Cream, succulent Rotisserie Chicken, and fall-off-the-bone Instant Pot Baby Back Ribs. My culinary bucket list is still full of Instant Pot aspirations, including trying this Instant Pot Creme Brulee, a hearty Instant Pot French Onion Soup, and homemade Instant Pot Yogurt! The versatility of this appliance truly knows no bounds, making it a worthy investment for any kitchen, especially those striving for gluten-free excellence.
Why This Gluten-Free Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding is a Must-Try
This bread pudding isn’t just a dessert; it’s an experience. The combination of sweet, tart apples and warm cinnamon perfectly complements the rich, custardy bread. Cooking it in the Instant Pot creates a uniquely soft and uniform texture throughout, unlike oven-baked versions that can sometimes dry out around the edges. The gentle steam bath ensures every bite is moist and tender. Paired with the heavenly vanilla caramel sauce, it’s a symphony of flavors that will delight anyone, gluten-free or not. It’s the ultimate comfort food for a chilly evening, a festive holiday gathering, or simply a cozy weekend treat.
Tips for the Perfect Bread Pudding:
- Choose Your Apples Wisely: For optimal texture and flavor, select baking apples like Honeycrisp or Braeburn. These varieties hold their shape well during cooking and provide a good balance of sweetness and tartness, preventing the pudding from becoming overly mushy or bland.
- Day-Old Bread is Best: Slightly stale or day-old gluten-free bread is ideal for bread pudding. It has a firmer structure that allows it to absorb the custard mixture more effectively without becoming soggy, ensuring a delightful chewiness.
- Don’t Skip the Sauce: The sweet vanilla sauce is not just an accompaniment; it truly completes the dish. Its caramelly consistency and rich flavor elevate the entire bread pudding experience, adding an extra layer of decadence you won’t want to miss.
- Customize Your Spices: While cinnamon and nutmeg are classic autumn spices, feel free to experiment. A pinch of ground ginger, allspice, or even a touch of cardamom can add a deeper, more complex flavor profile to your bread pudding.
- Serve Warm: Bread pudding is best served warm, allowing the flavors to meld beautifully and the custard to retain its soft, comforting texture.
Gluten Free Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding
20 minutes
30 minutes
50 minutes
6 servings
Bread pudding is an all-time favorite dessert. This homemade version is packed with fruit and has a sweet, fluffy custard and a sinfully delicious vanilla sauce that is caramel-like in consistency. We call it perfection on a plate and because it’s made with gluten-free cinnamon raisin bread, we can enjoy it anytime!
Rating: 4.8 out of 5 stars (based on 6 reviews)
Ingredients
For the Bread Pudding:
- 2 medium baking apples (Honeycrisp or Braeburn work beautifully), peeled, cored, and chopped into a medium dice
- 1 1/2 cups (355 ml) water (for the Instant Pot)
- 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing the pan
- 1/2 cup (100 g) dark brown sugar
- 2 1/2 cups (590 ml) whole milk
- 4 large eggs, beaten
- 2 teaspoons (10 ml) gluten-free vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 8 cups (400g) cubed gluten-free cinnamon raisin bread (such as Udi’s brand)
- 1/2 cup (75g) chopped pecans, toasted
For the Sweet Vanilla Sauce:
- 1/2 cup (112 g) unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (100 g) dark brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) gluten-free vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- Prepare the Custard: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the 2 tablespoons of melted butter, dark brown sugar, whole milk, beaten eggs, gluten-free vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt until well combined.
- Combine Ingredients: Add the cubed gluten-free bread, toasted pecans, and diced apples to the custard mixture. Gently mix everything until the bread cubes are thoroughly coated and absorbing the liquid. Set this mixture aside while you prepare your baking dish.
- Prepare the Baking Dish: Generously butter the bottom and sides of either a 6-cup (1410 ml) Bundt pan or a 1.5-quart round baking dish. Ensure butter reaches all corners and crevices of the pan. Pour the bread pudding mixture into the prepared pan.
- Set up the Instant Pot: Place a trivet at the bottom of your pressure cooker. Add 1 1/2 cups (355 ml) of water to the Instant Pot.
- Cover and Lower: Spray one side of a piece of aluminum foil with nonstick cooking spray. Place the foil, sprayed side down, over the bread pudding. This prevents condensation from dripping onto the pudding and keeps it moist. Create a foil sling by folding a long piece of foil into a sturdy strip; use this to carefully lower the bread pudding dish onto the trivet in the Instant Pot.
- Pressure Cook: Close and lock the Instant Pot lid, making sure the steam release knob is in the “Sealing” position. Cook on high pressure for 25 minutes.
- Release Pressure and Finish: Once the cooking time is complete, perform a quick release by carefully turning the steam release knob to the “Venting” position. Allow all the steam to escape until the float pin drops. Unlock and carefully open the lid. Use the foil sling to gently lift the dish out of the pressure cooker.
- Optional Crispy Top: If you prefer a slightly crispy top on your bread pudding, transfer the dish to a sheet pan. Place it in a preheated oven at 400°F (200°C or Gas Mark 6) for about 5 minutes. Watch it closely to prevent over-browning.
- Make the Sweet Vanilla Sauce: While the bread pudding cooks, prepare the sauce. In a small saucepan, combine the 1/2 cup unsalted butter, granulated sugar, 1/2 cup dark brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon gluten-free vanilla extract, and 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream. Place the pan over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the butter is fully melted and the sauce thickens to a caramel-like consistency, typically 5 to 8 minutes.
- Serve: Cut the warm bread pudding into individual portions. Drizzle generously with the sweet vanilla sauce over each piece. Serve immediately and enjoy every spoonful!
Notes
If you have difficulty finding gluten-free cinnamon raisin bread, you can substitute any other hearty gluten-free bread. To mimic the original flavor, simply add 1/4 cup (75g) raisins and an extra 3 tablespoons (36g) of sugar to the bread pudding mixture.
For an even richer flavor and exceptionally tender texture, consider soaking your bread cubes in the custard mixture for 15-20 minutes (or even longer, up to an hour) before cooking. This allows them to fully absorb the flavors and moisture.
This bread pudding is delightful on its own, but a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream or a dollop of fresh whipped cream makes it an even more indulgent treat, adding a contrasting coolness to the warm pudding.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6
Serving Size:
1
Amount Per Serving:
Calories: 208Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 148mgSodium: 340mgCarbohydrates: 18gFiber: 2gSugar: 8gProtein: 9g
HOW MUCH DID YOU LOVE THIS RECIPE?
Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Pinterest