Caramel Pecan Cornbread Pudding

Not sure what to do with that leftover cornbread? Make this Cornbread Pudding! It’s drenched in the most amazing homemade caramel topping and crunchy pecans.  

Sometime last year I went to a BBQ restaurant in Dallas that served cornbread pudding for dessert. It was one of those things that I didn’t know I was missing in my life until I experienced it for the first time.  I like my cornbread a little sweet, but turning it into bread pudding was something I had never considered!  It was perfection, and such an awesome pairing to delicious, smokey BBQ.

This cornbread pudding is everything you want it to be. Soft, fluffy, sweet. The caramel topping is the same one I use for my Caramelized Pecan Brie, just in a smaller batch.  It’s a perfect recipe for your next BBQ cookout or for when you have leftover cornbread.

What’s Needed for Cornbread Pudding? 

This easy cornbread dessert calls for minimal ingredients: 

• Cornbread
• Brown sugar
• Milk
• Heavy cream
• Eggs
• Cinnamon
• Butter
• Light corn syrup
• Salt
• Baking soda
• Pecans 

How to Make Cornbread Pudding 

1. Fill an oven-safe skillet or casserole dish with slices of cornbread.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine the milk, cream, eggs cinnamon, and half of the brown sugar. 
3. Sprinkle the remaining brown sugar evenly over the cornbread.
4. Pour the egg mixture over the cornbread.
5. Bake.
6. While the cornbread is cooling, prepare the caramel topping, then pour over the cornbread.
7. Top with pecans.

Can I Prep This Cornbread Pudding Dessert in Advance? 

This leftover cornbread dessert is best enjoyed the day it’s made. However, you can bake the cornbread a day or more in advance. (It’s okay if it’s stale, the sauce takes care of that!). 

Tips for Making Cornbread Bread Pudding

• Since cornbread is obviously a main component of this dish, it’s important to use a quality cornbread. I flip flop between buying box mix and making my own but I’ve found I do prefer the baking mix for this recipe.
• If you can’t have pecans or nuts, simply omit them from this recipe. 
• For the best flavor, I recommend using whole or 2% milk in the cornbread bread pudding. Skim or low-fat milk will make the mixture too watery. 

More Thanksgiving Desserts: 

• Pumpkin Trifle 
• Banana Bread Cobbler 
• Caramel Pecan Brownies 
• Pecan Sticky Buns
• Slow Cooker Spiced Apples

Caramel Pecan Cornbread Pudding

4.24 from 26 votes

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 50 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour

Servings: 8

Calories: 560kcal

Author: Emily Grace

Ingredients

• ▢ 15 oz package of Simply Homemade Cornbread
• ▢ 3/4 cup brown sugar , divided
• ▢ 2 cups milk
• ▢ 1 cup heavy cream
• ▢ 4 eggs
• ▢ 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Caramel topping:

• ▢ 1/4 cup brown sugar
• ▢ 2 tbsp butter
• ▢ 2 tbsp light corn syrup
• ▢ 1/8 tsp salt
• ▢ 1/8 tsp baking soda
• ▢ 1/4 cup chopped pecans

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Instructions

• Bake the cornbread as directed on the box.
• Allow the cornbread to cool, and then slice into small squares.
• Fill a skillet or casserole dish with the pieces of cornbread.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine milk, cream, eggs cinnamon, and half of the brown sugar. Mix well.
• Sprinkle the remaining brown sugar evenly over the cornbread.
• Pour the egg mixture over the cornbread.
• Bake for 50 minutes at 325 degrees F.
• While the cornbread is cooling, prepare the caramel topping.
• In a small saucepan, heat the brown sugar, butter, and corn syrup over medium heat, stirring constantly until it begins to soft boil.
• Allow the mixture to soft boil without stirring for one minute.
• Remove from heat and immediately stir in salt and baking soda.
• Pour the caramel sauce over the cornbread.
• Top with pecans.

Nutrition

Calories: 560kcal | Carbohydrates: 72g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 137mg | Sodium: 595mg | Potassium: 242mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 45g | Vitamin A: 805IU | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 157mg | Iron: 2mg

Did you make this recipe? Mention @GraceGoodEats or tag #graceandgoodeats!