Bread Pudding and a Legacy of Generosity

As part of our 2026 Synod Assembly under the theme Rooted in God’s Story, we are creating a community recipe book — Rooted at the Table. Submit your recipe by Friday, May 1, 2026, and learn more here.

Submitted by Kris Bartanen (New Journey Lutheran Church, Fountain Hills)

This bread pudding recipe honors the legacy of Harry and Sharon Vaughan and their ministry of care.

At New Journey, meals for neighbors experiencing homelessness have grown from 200 to more than 3,300. Alongside that work, Harry and Sharon began using leftover bread to make bread pudding for fellowship.

What might have been wasted became something nourishing—an act of stewardship and love.

Harry and Sharon Vaughan's Bread Pudding

Ingredients

  • 4 cups cubed (1” pieces) day-old French or Sourdough bread [or wheat bread heels leftover from sandwich packing]

  • ¼ cup butter, melted

  • 3 eggs

  • 2 cups milk

  • ½ cup sugar

  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

  • ½ teaspoon salt

  • Optional – 1 cup sliced firm bananas (1/4 inch pieces)

Instructions

  • Place bread cubes in greased 2-quart casserole. Pour butter over and toss to coat.

  • In medium bowl, slightly beat eggs; add milk, sugar, vanilla, and spices.

  • (Stir in bananas, if used.) Pour over bread crumbs and stir to coat.

  • Bake uncovered at 375 for 40 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

  • Serve warm with lemon sauce. Serves 6.

  • Lemon Sauce: 1 cup sugar, 4 Tablespoons cornstarch, 1 ½ cups water, 2 Tablespoons lemon zest, ½ cup lemon juice, 4 Tablespoons butter

  • Add sugar and cornstarch to a saucepan over medium heat. Gradually add water and stir to combine. Cook until mixture starts to boil; then boil for one minute, stirring constantly.

  • Remove from heat. Stir in lemon juice, zest, and butter. Let cool 30 minutes before serving. Serve warm.

  • Pour boiling water over wheat and let stand until cool.

  • Add parsley and green onions. Combine.

  • In a separate bowl, mix lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper.

  • Pour over wheat mixture and combine.

  • Gently add tomatoes

  • Refrigerate until served, at least 3 hours

Story

Since 2011, New Journey has packed nutritious lunches for persons experiencing homelessness, initially providing 200 for Grace Lutheran Church in Central Phoenix. Harry and Sharon began a tradition of collecting leftover wheat bread “heels” to prepare bread pudding for subsequent Sunday Fellowship.

Three years ago, the heat respite lunch pack program expanded through collaboration with the Northeast Valley Consortium, supported by a hunger grand from Ascension Lutheran, and provides more than 3300 lunches, water pallets, and electrolyte powder for Arizona Faith Network sites across the valley. New Journey honors Harry and Sharon’s generous spirits in submitting this recipe.

Brian FlatgardRooted at the Table, Recipes, 2026 RecipesComment