Robin: The origins of bread pudding are lost in the mists of time—which makes total sense to me, since it is an excellent way of putting stale or leftover bread to good use. One version of it, called capirotada de vigilia or simply capirotada, came to the New World via the Spanish colonists and evolved into what today is considered a traditional Mexican dish, usually enjoyed only during Lent and Holy Week, most often on Fridays. Capirotada is equally delicious as a breakfast item, a dessert, or a tea-time or evening snack.
Mexican culture has been greatly shaped by Catholicism, and the ingredients in this dish are said to represent elements of Christ’s Passion on Good Friday. The bread represents the body of Christ, the sweet syrup his holy blood; the (whole) cloves are seen as the nails used to crucify him. Traditional versions of capirotada use whole sticks of cinnamon, which consist of a particular tree bark and represent the cross on which Jesus died, while the layer of cheese over the top refers to the Holy Shroud, the sheet which covered Christ’s body in the tomb.
If you asked ten Mexican cooks how to make capirotada, you would get ten different answers—and all would be correct. As so often happens with classic dishes, each family has its own “take” on the recipe, and regional variations exist. The recipe below is a very simple version, one that you are invited to build on to create your own rendition. You could add some grated coconut or use alternative dried fruits or nuts, for example, as a start. Forget the butter and fry the bread in pork lard to make the dish much more rustic. Flavor your capirotada with a liqueur, top with colorful sprinkles, or add a dollop of cream while serving, if you want to get a little fancier. Do whatever it takes to make this wonderful and richly historical dish a part of your own family culinary history.
Ingredient notes: Though dark brown sugar will give you good results in this recipe, capirotada is traditionally made with piloncillo, a minimally processed brown sugar. This flavorful ingredient is known by different names in other Spanish-speaking countries: chancaca, tapa de dulce, rapadura, or papelon. Learn all about this delicious sugar cane product here and here. Read about Mexican bolillo bread here
More delicious breads to try:
Basic Capirotada Bread Pudding
Ingredients
- 6 Mexican bolillo loaves or an equivalant amount of French or Italian bread
- ½ cup raisins
- 1 pound about 500 grams piloncillo OR 1 and ½ cups packed dark brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 5 tablespoons real butter, divided
- ½ cup shelled peanuts in halves or almonds (sliced or chopped)
- 2 apples, cut into slices of a little under ½ inch (1 cm) thick
- ½ pound (about 250 grams) cheese*, shredded, crumbled, or thinly sliced
Instructions
-
Prepare the bread: Slow method – Cut the bread into slices about an inch thick. Place them in a single layer on a baking sheet and leave them out, uncovered, for a couple of days, until the bread is dry and hard. / Fast method – Place bread slices on a baking sheet and toast them in the oven (low heat) until dry and hard.
-
Place the raisins into a small cup and cover with ½ cup very hot water. Allow the raisins to soak while you prepare the syrup.
-
Place the piloncillo (or dark brown sugar) into a large pan: add the cinnamon, cloves, and 2 cups water. Put the pan on the burner over medium-low heat; heat mixture, stirring frequently, until all the sugar has dissolved. (This will take only a few minutes if you are using brown sugar, longer if you have piloncillo.) Once sugar is dissolved, turn the heat off. Add 4 tablespoons of the butter (keeping 1 tablespoon of it for later) and allow it to melt in the syrup. Let syrup cool for at least 10 or 15 minutes so that it will be easier and safer to work with.
-
Pour about one fourth of the syrup into a jar or small pitcher for later use.
-
Drain the raisins, pouring any water that they have not absorbed into the pan with the syrup. Set the raisins aside. Stir the syrup.
-
With your hands, add the dry or toasted bread to the syrup in the pan, breaking up the bread into pieces as you go. Stir gently so that all the bread will be covered with syrup and most or all the liquid is absorbed.
-
Turn the oven on to 350 F / 180 C so that it can start heating.
-
Use the other tablespoonful of butter to grease the bottom and sides of an 8- or 9-inch square (20-23 centimeters) glass or metal baking pan (or another shape of similar volume). Place about half of the bread chunks into the dish, distributed evenly. Sprinkle the bread with half of the soaked raisins and half of the peanuts or almonds; lay the apple slices over this.
-
Place the rest of the bread pieces over the apples, then sprinkle on the other half of the raisins and nuts. If any liquid remains in the pan, pour it over the elements in the dish.
-
Bake your capirotada for approximately 40 minutes, until the apple slices are thoroughly cooked. Spread the cheese over the bread pudding and put back into the oven for another 5 minutes or so, until cheese has softened or melted.
-
Take the capirotada out of the oven and allow it to cool. Serve, warm or at room temperature, by scooping out with a large spoon, sturdy spatula, or a pie server. Pouring a little of the reserved syrup over each portion.
-
Store leftovers at room temperature for a day or refrigerated for several days. Reheat slightly before serving again.
Recipe Notes
*For tastiest results, choose a mild Mexican cheese such as melty Mexican Manchego or queso fresco. Sharp, aged cheeses have too strong a flavor for this recipe, and processed cheese products don’t mesh well with the rustic nature of this dish.
Last update: April 13, 2025
Leave a Reply