It’s hard to beat a day of hiking in one of our glorious National Parks. Well, unless dessert at sunset includes a warm serving of s’mores bread pudding! Seated at an outdoor patio just outside of Zion National Park, hikers hit the jackpot with this dessert.

S’mores, a quintessential American sweet treat perfect for the Fourth of July, tumbled into popularity decades ago from a 1927 publication by the Girl Scouts. The ingenuous dessert relies on a toasted marshmallow to melt the milk chocolate squares sandwiched between graham crackers.

Studded with all the components of the classic campfire confection — graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate — the warm pudding etched itself into a core memory. Right alongside our first bread pudding encounter at Commander’s Palace in New Orleans, many years ago.

Bread pudding is a stodgy name for a comforting, not-too-sweet, easy-to-make dessert. As the name implies, it all starts with bread. Usually stale bread, cut or torn into bits. A combination of eggs and milk soaks into the bread as it cooks, yielding a soft pudding texture.

Typically, crusty French-style bread forms the base of the pudding. For our s’mores variation, soft yet rich brioche bread works well. Challah, another slightly sweet and tender bread, makes a good substitute, as does a yeasted cinnamon bread. Dry the bread pieces in a low oven for up to a couple of days in advance.

In this pudding recipe, broken graham crackers, chocolate chunks, and cut-up marshmallows nestle into the bread-and-custard mixture. The heat of the oven melds it all together.

Semisweet chocolate is less sweet than the milk chocolate bars we enjoy around the campfire with our charred marshmallows. Not to worry, the pudding will still be plenty sweet. Dark chocolate will yield even less sweetness in the finished dessert. It’s yummy here. Cinnamon graham crackers can be used here; simply eliminate the added ground cinnamon. For an extra crunchy top, add a generous dusting of crushed graham crackers and pecans.

To recreate the unique flavor of toasted marshmallow, add a few cut-up marshmallows to the baked pudding and run the dish under a broiler. Watch closely as marshmallows char just as quickly under the broiler as on a skewer over the fire pit.

Bake the pudding shortly before you plan to serve it. Or, add reheat in a low oven. Serve with a drizzle of warm chocolate sauce. A scoop of vanilla ice cream is always welcome.

Warm pudding on a cool summer night — what could be better? Hopefully, your view includes Fourth of July fireworks and loved ones.

S’mores Bread Pudding

Makes 8 servings

12 to 14 ounces brioche or challah bread

16 to 18 (about 4 ounces) standard-size marshmallows

2 cups (about 4 ounces) graham crackers broken into 1/2-inch pieces

1 cup (about 5 ounces) semisweet or dark chocolate chunks or chips

4 tablespoons butter, softened

4 large eggs

2 cups nonfat or low-fat milk

1 cup half-and-half or heavy whipping cream

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract or 1 teaspoon chocolate extract

1/4 teaspoon each: cinnamon, nutmeg, salt

For the topping:

1/2 cup coarsely crushed graham crackers

1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans, optional

Chocolate sauce, warmed

Vanilla ice cream, optional

Mint sprigs, for garnish

1. Heat oven to 250 degrees. Cut bread into roughly 1-inch cubes. You should have 12 loosely packed cups. Scatter over a large rimmed baking sheet. Bake, stirring often, until dry and crisp, about 25 minutes. Let cool. Bread will keep a day or so wrapped in foil.

2. Use 2 tablespoons of the butter to coat bottom and sides of an ovenproof metal 13-by 9-inch baking dish.

3. Put bread cubes into a large bowl. Use a serrated knife or scissors to cut marshmallows into quarters. Leave a handful of marshmallow pieces out for the topping and add the rest to the bread along with broken graham crackers and chocolate chunks. Mix well. Transfer to prepared baking dish. Spend a couple of minutes making sure ingredients are evenly distributed.

4. Whisk eggs in same large bowl until mixed. Whisk in milk, cream. sugar, extract, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Whisk until sugar dissolves. Pour evenly over bread mixture moistening everything. Press mixture with the back of a spatula to compact things and be sure bread is moistened. Dot the top with the remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Let stand while oven preheats.

5. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Bake until top is puffed and golden brown, about 50 minutes.

6. Preheat broiler and position rack to lowest setting, if that’s an option. Sprinkle pudding with crushed graham crackers and pecans. Scatter remaining cut marshmallows over the top. Broil, at least six inches from heat source, until marshmallows are golden brown, about 2 minutes. Do not walk away or marshmallows may burn. If they do, scrape them off and repeat the process. Cool on wire rack for at least 15 minutes before serving.

7. Cut warm pudding into squares. Serve topped with warm chocolate sauce. Add a scoop of ice cream, if desired. Garnish with mint.

(JeanMarie Brownson is a James Beard Award-winning author and the recipient of the IACP Cookbook Award for her latest cookbook, “Dinner at Home.” JeanMarie, a chef and authority on home cooking, Mexican cooking and specialty food, is one of the founding partners of Frontera Foods. She co-authored three cookbooks with chef Rick Bayless, including “Mexico: One Plate at a Time.” JeanMarie has enjoyed developing recipes and writing about food, travel and dining for more than four decades.)

©2026 JeanMarie Brownson. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.