Red velvet cake scraps make a bread pudding that ought to be illegal.

“This is insane!” I said as I spooned the ingredients into the slow cooker.

And it was. Taking one dessert and using it as the first ingredient in another dessert is an exercise in excess. It’s so decadent it’s almost a perversion. As I said: insane. And I stand by that assessment.

I’m happy to report that insanity tastes so very good.

I was inspired to make this bread pudding when I learned that a local bakery, Magpies, sells boxes of cake scraps for just a few bucks. They have parts leftover from cutting cakes into shapes or shearing off the tops before frosting. The cake pieces are buttery-rich even on their own.

Bread puddings are said to be a cinch in the crock-pot, slow cooking in the moist heat like the famous steamed British puddings. When I saw a box of red velvet cake scraps for sale at Magpies, inspiration struck like a big, fat, sugary bolt of lightning.

I researched several bread pudding recipes before creating this one, which reduces the liquid in most recipes since we’re making it in the moisture-rich crock-pot biosphere, and it also has much less sugar (when you start with red velvet cake, you can presume a certain level of sweetness.)

The resulting cake-based bread pudding is invitingly warm, sweet, and a trollop-y dark red. You often hear desserts described as sinful. Well, this one is a bad, bad girl.

Tastes good before you're even halfway there.

Slow Cooker Red Velvet Cake Bread Pudding Recipe

Ingredients:

6 cups red velvet cake, unfrosted, cut into cubes
1 1/2 cups milk or cream
1/2 tsp vanilla
3 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup white chocolate chips or chunks

Directions: Place cake cubes in the crock of your slow cooker. In a separate bowl, whisk together cream, vanilla, eggs and sugar. Pour mixture over red velvet cake. Sprinkle in white chocolate chips and stir slightly to combine.

Cook on high 2-3 hours. (You can try cooking it more slowly at your own risk. With dishes involving raw eggs, I always use the high setting to cook them at a safe temperature.)

Serve British-style with fresh cream poured over the top, or red-blooded American-style with Cool Whip. Whichever you choose, serve it while it’s warm.

This makes a tremendous batch. You’ll be glad.