The holiday season is technically over, but for most Americans, the chill of winter is still around. The rich, warming flavors of seasonal fare can keep spirits up after days of windburned faces and ice-cold extremities, which means there’s no need to bid adieu to your favorite festive foods just yet.
From pecan pies to applesauce-topped latkes, cinnamon is the star of many holiday staples — the scent of its woody perfume filling kitchens and apartment hallways each year as temperatures begin to drop. It’s also the leading flavor in several popular spirits, including Fireball Cinnamon Whisky and RumChata, a cream liqueur that’s become one of the fastest-growing brands in America. Both drinks are popular year-round but especially during the winter, promising to warm drinkers from the inside out when sipped on their own or in cocktails.
If you prefer to eat your sweet treats rather than imbibing them, this booze-soaked bread pudding promises to do the trick. Made with RumChata and bursting with vanilla-cinnamon goodness, the dessert is further improved with the addition of Fireball hard sauce. Beware: This bread pudding isn’t for the faint of heart (or for the minors at your dinner party) — it packs a serious boozy punch.
Made with ingredients you likely already have in your pantry and fridge, the dessert is ideal for novice bakers and royal taste testers alike. So, preheat your oven, head to your liquor cabinet, and get baking with the recipe below.
RumChata Bread Pudding With Fireball Hard Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
Bread Pudding:
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 5-6 cups day-old egg bread (brioche or challah preferred)
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1 cup RumChata
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 1/3 cup light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 3/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- Pinch salt
Sauce:
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1/4 cup whole milk
- 1/4 cup granulated white sugar
- 1 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/3 cup Fireball Whisky
- Pinch salt
- 1 tablespoons butter
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Melt butter into a 9×13 casserole dish and allow to stand for 1 minute; add cubed bread to casserole dish
- In a large bowl, whisk together milk, RumChata, eggs, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt.
- Pour mixture over cubed bread, and stir to combine. Allow to sit at room temperature for about 45 minutes.
- Once the bread has mostly absorbed the custard mixture, bake for 1 hour, until top is golden brown
- While pudding is baking, make the sauce. Combine cream, milk, and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat.
- Add cornstarch and about half the Fireball to a small mixing bowl and whisk to create a slurry. Add the slurry to the saucepan, and bring mixture to a boil.
- Once sauce begins to boil, reduce heat to a gentle simmer and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove sauce from heat; add salt, butter, and the remaining Fireball.
- Drizzle sauce over bread pudding, and serve warm.
