Creamy, savory bread pudding with sausage, sage and caramelized leeks is the family favorite side dish that goes on my Thanksgiving table every year!
Typically you may think of bread pudding as a dessert, but when you take out the sugar and add in savory herbs, sausage, and caramelized onions bread pudding takes on a whole new identity!
Savory bread pudding is reminiscent of a traditional Thanksgiving stuffing. I actually prefer bread pudding because it’s baked with milk, cream, and eggs it stays super moist, whereas stuffing can dry out easily.
You’ll want to use day-old bread or bread that’s stale and doesn’t have much moisture in it. If your bread is still fresh or not dried out you can cube it into small pieces, place them on a baking sheet, pop it in the oven, and bake it for about 10 minutes. You don’t want to completely toast the bread, just dry it out.
Ingredients You’ll Need:
Recipe Steps:
Step 1. Make the Custard
Whisk together the eggs, milk and cream. Season well with salt and pepper.
Step 2. Sauté the Sausage, Leek and Onion
Cook the sausage then the leeks and onion until caramelized.
Step 3. Bake
Toss all of the ingredients together in a large bowl then transfer to a baking dish and baking until golden brown and bubbling.
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Savory Bread Pudding with Sausage and Sage
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb mild pork sausage casings removed
- 4 tbsp butter
- 1 yellow onion thinly sliced
- 2 medium leeks whites only, washed well and thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tbsp minced fresh sage
- 1 loaf day-old bread (about 1lb) country loaf or sourdough, cut or torn into bite-sized pieces
Custard
- 5 whole eggs
- 2 c milk
- 2 c cream
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350. Generously butter a large (9×13) baking dish.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat then add in the olive oil and sausage. Cook the sausage for 8-10 minutes until brown and caramelized, stirring occasionally, breaking up the meat with the back of a wooden spoon. Once fully cooked, use a slotted spoon to transfer the sausage to a small plate or bowl and set aside.
- In the same pan, add the butter, leek, onion and a generous pinch of salt. Cook the leeks and onion on medium/low heat until soft and caramelized, about 20-30 minutes. Stir often to prevent scorching. Right at the end, add in the fresh sage and thyme leaves. Cook for an additional 1-2 minutes then turn off the heat.
- While the onions and leeks are cooking, whisk together the milk, cream and eggs in a large mixing bowl. Next, add in the torn bread, cooked sausage, leek and onion – season generously with salt and pepper. Fold all of the ingredients together until evenly combined then pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish and bake for 50-60 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly. Serve warm!
Andrea
Just finished making it Leigh and it’s delicious! Fortney approved, In fact she won’t leave it alone. . .
Leigh
I’m so happy to hear that! Happy Thanksgiving to the Gillespie/Gallia girls! xo
Alison
Can this be made the day before and refrigerated, then cooked on Thursday?
Leigh Hyatt Anderson
Hi Alison, I’ve never tested it that way but I imagine it would be totally fine like that.