How to Make Croutons From Leftover Bread

By lindaauman

Croutons are a great use for leftover bread. They are also economical as salad fixings are not as affordable as they used to be. Stale bread, bagels, English muffins, and just about any kind of fresh bread will work. Save the heels from different types of bread for more variety. They can also be crushed and uses as bread crumbs in recipes.

Ingredients

• 4 slices of bread
• 2 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 tsp each of preferred seasonings
• 2 tablespoons of oil

Details

Adapted from ehow.com

Preparation

Step 1

Cut bread into cubes and put it in a bowl. They should roughly measure about 1 inch. The bread can also be torn for rustic looking croutons or cut with scissors for neater squares.

Choose the seasonings. Instead of Parmesan cheese, Romano or other hard cheeses can be used. Olive oil, canola oil, or melted butter all work well. Seasonings like pepper, parsley, garlic, or other herbs can be added to taste.

Mix the seasoning and oil in a small bowl.

Add the seasonings to the bread cubes. Toss. Try to get the cubes evenly coated.

Spread the croutons out on an ungreased cookie sheet. He cubes can be close together but they should not be overcrowded. They need air to dry out.

Bake the croutons at 325 degrees until crisp. Larger, denser pieces of bread such as cubed bagels will take much longer than white sandwich bread.

Once the croutons are cool, store them in a glass jar or a plastic container with a tight lid.