Tired of throwing away that expensive bread that you’re buying at the store? How about the wonderful homemade bread that you worked so hard to bake for the family? If you are finding yourself with more stale bread on hand than you care to admit, I have a great way you can put it to use before sending it to the compost pile–homemade croutons!
I bake our bread every two to three weeks–usually a loaf of sandwich bread and a pan of dinner rolls. The problem is that we are not huge bread eaters. Sometimes we use up all the bread quickly, and others, we just don’t. I do love bread, but as a family, we don’t always get through all of the bread before it goes stale.
Because I’m into finding ways to get one more use out of food that might otherwise be thrown away, I was delighted to be introduced to this recipe for these homemade croutons. I learned how to make these from my friend Karyn from My Stitching Nook (check her out if you love cross stitch, her work is fantastic), and have tweaked the recipe only a little. They are delicious, and so very easy! Here’s the recipe.
Perfect Homemade Croutons
Equipment
- large cookie sheet
Ingredients
- stale bread (not moldy!), cubed in half- to one-inch chunks
- italian dressing enough to make all bread cubes evenly wet
- ziploc bag or bowl with lid large enough to fit all of your croutons, with room to shake them around
Instructions
- Place bread cubes in your ziploc, and pour italian dressing in the bag, enough to coat your bread cubes well.
- Close your bag and shake em up.
- Convect bake on a cookie sheet at 400 degrees for 20 minutes OR regular bake at 400 for 25 minutes (cut the time if you like them lighter).
- Remove from oven, allow to cool, then store in the refrigerator for up to a week. (They may last longer, depending on your refrigerator.)
Notes
These will be deliciously crunchy on your summer salads, or even alone as a snack, just like chips!
Oo, I love croutons. Delicious, Thanks for sharing!
Absolutely, Lizzie! Thanks for visiting!
We don’t use a lot of croutons, but what a simple way to make your own! Thanks for sharing on the (mis)Adventures Monday Blog Hop! Can’t wait to see what you have this week!!
Thanks Mindie, I’ll be there!
Great ideas for the croutons, thanks for sharing this on Dream Create and Inspire.
Maria
Thanks Maria!
Love homemade croutons.
Thanks for linking up at the Homestead Blog Hop. Hope to see you again this week.
Thanks Gregg, I’ll be there!
Kristi, these croutons really look good! I know my kids would love to eat them in salad and so would I :). Thanks so much for sharing how you made them. Have a great week and take care, Tara
You are welcome, Tara, and thank you so much for visiting, and for your kind comment! 🙂