Recipe Details
Cheddar Gorgeous! Savory Cheese and Onion Bread and Butter Pudding
Photograph by anniesnomsblog | Total time: 1 hour | Serves: 4
Ingredients
For the Cheese & Onion Sandwiches
8 slices thick-cut bread (white or wholemeal both work well)
Softened butter, for spreading
1 medium onion, peeled and finely sliced
8 ounces grated mature farmhouse cheddar cheese
For the Herb Cheese Custard
1 pint whole milk
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon English mustard
Salt and black pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mixed herbs (or 1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs)
Optional Add-Ins
Feel free to customize with any of these:
Sliced tomatoes
Sliced cooked ham
Cooked sausage
Crumbled cooked bacon
Branston pickle
Your favorite chutney
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Assemble your sandwiches first: Butter all 8 bread slices, then build sandwiches with the grated cheddar and sliced onion. Add any optional extras you love here (this recipe is very flexible — non-vegetarian additions like ham or crispy bacon work beautifully). Cut each full sandwich into four triangles, then arrange them standing upright (pointed ends facing up) in a well-greased baking dish.
Important Pro Tip: Do not use thin standard American-style sandwich bread here — it is too thin, turns mushy, and will not crisp up properly.
Make the custard: Whisk the beaten eggs together with milk, mustard, salt, pepper, and herbs until fully combined.
Preheat your oven to 200°C (400°F). Pour the custard mixture evenly over the arranged sandwiches. If you have leftover cheese or onion, sprinkle it over the top for extra flavor. Let the entire dish rest for 30 minutes before baking — this step gives you a lighter, fluffier finished pudding.
Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, until the custard is fully set and the cheese on top is golden brown and bubbly.
Simply put, this is just layered cheese sandwiches covered in savory herb custard, baked until golden — the perfect savory twist on classic bread and butter pudding!
Serving Notes
Serve warm for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or a cozy supper. You can prep the entire dish the night before, refrigerate, and bake it the next day — just let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before baking.
Community Reviews & Variations
Got a question? Share it with the home cooking community!
What a lovely, genuinely gorgeous bread pudding — absolute heaven on a plate. I used a loaf of bread with cheddar already baked in, added crisp crumbled bacon, sautéed my onion in bacon drippings, and topped with scallions for a pop of color. I mixed extra sharp cheddar and Dublin white cheddar for the cheese, used thyme and parsley for herbs, and I wouldn’t change a single thing. This is the most satisfying breakfast I’ve had in a long time! Another brilliant recipe.
This is almost identical to my grandma’s recipe, only she adds ½ teaspoon paprika and sometimes leaves the onions out. She always served it with a slice of bacon and a tomato wedge, and it’s still my favorite comfort food.
Oh my word, this is so good, and such an easy fix, with a beautiful presentation that’s fancy enough for a special occasion. I used whole wheat bread and a simple mix of mostly chives and parsley, and loved the flavor and subtle texture the onion added. My husband and I enjoyed this for Mother’s Day brunch, and I think it’s so easy to turn this into a full one-pan meal by adding chopped broccoli to the custard mix. That sounds perfect paired with the ham I used! Serve it with a salad or soup and you’ve got a great meal. Thank you for another fun, inspiring, tasty recipe.
I was looking for something different instead of potatoes, and this fit the bill perfectly. It’s such a great dish — I added extra onions and cheese to layer on top of the bread, and it’s so light, it just melts in your mouth. I’ll definitely make it again trying out all the optional add-ins. Thanks for sharing!
Made for Australia/NZ Swap #42
An enthusiastic 5 stars for this recipe! I made a half batch for my husband and I for lunch, adding garden tomato slices and Canadian bacon along with the onion. We only ate half of our portions with beer, saving the rest for a pre-dinner snack — it’s that good! It looked a little messy (I tried holding the triangles together with toothpicks, but the custard made them blend together anyway) but that didn’t make it any less delicious. My husband noted this would work really well as a strata by layering all the ingredients instead, which is exactly how I plan to make it next time. Another first-rate recipe from a fantastic creator — thanks for sharing!
(View 9 more community reviews)
Most popular community tweak: Double the amount of cheese for extra richness.
About the Recipe Creator
I’m a British (English-Scottish) cook, born in South Africa, who has lived all over the world — including Hong Kong, Germany, Cyprus, the United States, and Singapore. I’ve been lucky enough to travel extensively my whole life, and I still have constant wanderlust!
Earlier in my career, I trained and worked as a graphic designer for many years, before going on to teach and lecture in English Literature and Art History. Now I live in South West France with my husband and my daughter, who started university in 2006. We share our home with Willow, a very chatty Burmese cat who lets us live with her! I previously had two beautiful Siamese cats: Monty, a seal point who lived to 18, and Rama, a blue point who lived to 20, and I’d love to welcome another Siamese into our home one day.
My favorite hobbies are reading, writing, painting, drawing, photography, gardening, any kind of creative project, walking, traveling, dining out, and of course, cooking! I love all cuisines, but I’m especially passionate about traditional British food — and no, it’s not all bad! I love cooking seasonal food for traditional holidays and feasts, and I’m a big fan of slow cooking. I also love French and North African cuisine; honestly, there’s very little food I don’t love!
My husband and I run a small bed and breakfast (Chambres D’Hotes) called Auberge de la Fontaine here in beautiful South West France. We specialize in gourmet food and wine breaks, French antique restoration courses, French language classes, and French cookery classes. Our whole home is furnished with antique French furniture that we’ve restored ourselves. Our charming village is home to one of the oldest churches in the region, sits on the famous St. James of Compostella pilgrimage route, and is located between the Cognac and Bordeaux wine-growing regions.
We have a wonderful vegetable garden where we grow all our own herbs and most of our own fruit and vegetables. I specialize in growing rare, unusual, and heirloom herbs in our walled garden, plus many varieties of lavender, old-fashioned shrub roses, and heirloom produce.
Even though we’ve lived overseas for many years, we still love going home to Northern England, near Scarborough and York, to visit family and friends. We always look forward to eating out at the fantastic gastro-pubs in North Yorkshire, and stopping for a pint of real English ale at our local pub — that’s always a must!
A Note from Me
A big thank you to everyone who tries my recipes, leaves reviews, and shares photos of your versions! I try very hard to reply to every single person, but sometimes I get busy with the bed and breakfast and other projects, so I might be late with a reply or even forget occasionally. Thank you all so much — I’m always so honored that people choose to make my recipes, and I love reading your reviews and seeing your photos. Merci beaucoup!
Every recipe I post, whether it’s an original creation or an adaptation from a book or chef, has been tested at least once by me — I like to be your guinea pig so you don’t have to! If you have any questions about any of my recipes, please reach out and I’ll answer as soon as I can. I post measurements in both Imperial (pounds and ounces) and Metric (kilograms and grams), as I’m British.
Merci Beaucoup 💛