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Scandinavian rye bread pudding in a white ceramic dish with golden cardamom custard top and lingonberry jam

Scandinavian Rye Bread Pudding with Cardamom Custard

Dark rye bread soaked in a cardamom-spiced egg custard, baked until just set with a golden top. A Nordic-style bread pudding that uses up leftover rugbrød beautifully.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 310
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 350 g day-old dark rye bread (rugbrød) torn into rough 3 cm chunks
  • 400 ml whole milk
  • 100 ml single cream
  • 4 large eggs
  • 80 g dark brown sugar plus 1 tbsp for the top
  • 3/4 tsp ground cardamom freshly ground preferred
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 medium orange orange zest finely grated
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 20 g unsalted butter for greasing and dotting on top
  • 1 pinch pinch of fine salt

Method
 

  1. Heat the oven to 170 C / 340 F. Butter a 20 x 28 cm baking dish generously.
  2. Tear the rye bread into rough 3 cm chunks and scatter them evenly across the prepared dish.
  3. Whisk together the eggs, brown sugar, cardamom, cinnamon, orange zest, vanilla extract, and salt in a large bowl until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture looks uniform.
  4. Pour in the milk and cream and whisk again until fully combined.
  5. Pour the custard evenly over the bread chunks, making sure every piece is coated. Press the bread down gently with your hands or a spatula so it sits submerged in the custard.
  6. Leave to soak for 15 minutes at room temperature so the custard fully penetrates the rye bread.
  7. Dot the top with small pieces of butter and scatter the reserved tablespoon of brown sugar across the surface.
  8. Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 25 minutes.
  9. Remove the foil and bake for a further 20 minutes until the top is golden brown and the centre feels firm with only a slight spring when pressed.
  10. Remove from the oven and rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Notes

Nutrition is estimated per serving based on 6 portions. Values will vary depending on the specific rye bread used, as seeded loaves add fat and fibre.