Cinnamon Whiskey Sauce for Bread Pudding

This buttery, warmly spiced Whiskey Sauce is perfectly scrumptious over bread pudding! Variations include Traditional Cinnamon, Cinnamon-Orange, and alcohol-free vanilla sauce.

Jump to:

• What's the Scoop on this Dessert Sauce Recipe?
• How to Make Cinnamon Whiskey Sauce
• Sauce Variations
• Cinnamon Whiskey Butter Sauce

What's the Scoop on this Dessert Sauce Recipe?

The inspiration for this whiskey hard sauce recipe goes back many years to when we used to visit a charming little diner in Netarts on the Oregon Coast, solely for their unforgettable bread pudding. I still vividly recall the first time a warm piece arrived at our table, drenched in a rich, buttery, and slightly spirited sauce—oh my gosh!

This easy to make, delectably spiced dessert sauce will raise your bread pudding from luscious to to truly scrumptious! Take the time to whip up a batch for your bread pudding just once, and you will never eat bread pudding without it again!

How to Make Cinnamon Whiskey Sauce

Place a small, clean plate to chill in the refrigerator.

Whisk the sugar, butter, half & half, and corn syrup in a medium saucepan. Set the pan on the stove and turn the burner on low.

Stir over low heat until mixture begins to boil. Continue to cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until it reaches a full, rolling boil. (A boil that cannot be stirred down.)

Remove the pan from the heat, and take a step back from pan for a moment as you whisk in the whiskey. The mixture will bubble up almost immediately and release all of alcohol at once.

DO NOT have your face directly over the pan when you add the alcohol. All of this happens very quickly, and you can get a nasty steam burn if you stand too close.

Take the plate out of the refrigerator. Drop a teaspoon of sauce on the plate, and determine if the sauce on the plate is thick enough for your tastes.

If the sauce is thick enough for you, move on to the next step.

If you would like your sauce to be thicker, return to the pan to the stove over MEDIUM-LOW. Stirring constantly, allow it to reduce for a few more minutes. Try the plate test again.

When you are satisfied with the thickness of your sauce, pour it into a clean container and allow it to cool.

The whiskey sauce will harden if left at room temperature. To reheat it, transfer to a saucepan and slowly heat it until warm and bubbly, stirring occasionally. Heating in the microwave also works.

Serve sauce over warm bread pudding.

Sauce Variations

Rum Sauce

• Substitute rum for whiskey in this recipe.

Cinnamon-Orange Whiskey Butter Sauce

• Use 2 ounces of cinnamon whiskey, plus 2 ounces of plain whiskey, plus 1 teaspoon orange zest.
• OR, Use 2 ounces of cinnamon whiskey, plus 2 ounces of Grand Marnier.

Alcohol-Free Vanilla Butter Sauce

All of the alcohol cooks out of this sauce when made as directed. However, if you prefer not to use alcohol in your cooking at all:

1. Omit all alcohol
2. Add 1 teaspoon cinnamon when you add the sugar.
3. Add 1 tablespoon of vanilla when you remove the sauce from the heat.

The resulting sauce will be a much milder, but still delicious.

If you love this Whiskey Butter Sauce recipe, you might also like:

• Old-fashioned Bread Pudding
• Bread Pudding Muffins
• Classic Whiskey Ginger with Lime
• Eggnog Bundt Cake with Rum Glaze

If dessert sauces are something you crave, be sure to checkout our collection of caramel and butterscotch recipes, too!

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