Drew's Spicy Croutons
"Never throw away dried-out, stale (not molded)bread again! Turn it into delicious croutons to use for salads and low-fat tasty snacks. These cubes can be used in your "stuffing" recipes. BONUS: After the croutons are toasted, save the left-over toasted bread crumbs in the bottom of the baking pan - they are better than store-bought seasoned bread crumbs."
photo by brokenburner
- Ready In:
- 2hrs 30mins
- Ingredients:
- 6
- Serves:
-
18
ingredients
- 1 lb bread, slices
- nonstick cooking spray
- 2 teaspoons garlic salt (can add more, if you like)
- 1 teaspoon basil leaves
- 1 teaspoon italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon onion powder or 1 teaspoon onion salt
directions
- Note: You can use any kind of bread (fresh or stale) to make croutons: hamburger or hot dog buns, Italian or French, Multi-grain, Sourdough or dinner rolls.
- A great way to use up stale bread.
- Just be SURE it doesn't have any MOLD on it.
- Preheat oven to 275 degrees.
- Spray two large baking sheets (with sides) with non-stick cooking spray.
- Using serrated knife, cut bread into small or medium cubes.
- You can stack several slices and cut them all at one time.
- Spread bread cubes evenly on the baking sheets.
- Spray them generously with non-stick cooking spray.
- Sprinkle the seasonings evenly over the bread cubes.
- Spray cubes again with non-stick cooking spray.
- Taste a bread cube and add more seasonings to taste.
- They should taste very seasoned, as the seasonings mellow somewhat when cooked.
- Bake about 45 minutes.
- Stir, and continue baking for another 15-60 minutes, stirring occasionally until cubes are lightly browned, dry and crunchy.
- Baking time will depend upon the size of cubes and freshness of bread.
- Watch during last 30 minutes of cooking, as they can get browned very quickly during the end of cooking time.
- Turn oven OFF and let them sit in the oven for another 30 minutes to dry out completely.
- Store in gallon sealable plastic bags.
- Save some and store at room temperature for use within 2 weeks and freeze the rest for up to 4 months.
- Note: If you do not get them completely dry, they will mold if left at room temperature very long.
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Reviews
-
Delicious! Not as heavy as traditional croutons. My son and husband were eating them by the handfuls. -
These were easy to make! I used one whole wheat hot dog bun so I didn't really measure the seasonings, I just dumped them together. The bun was frozen, and I cut cubes out of it using a vegetable chopper; it was probably too fresh which is why the croutons were so light and airy, which isn't a BAD thing -- but they'd sop up liquid way too fast. I don't think they could be put in soup, because they'd get instantly soggy! Overall a good recipe, though. Thanks for posting. -
These were great! I didn't have all the seasonings on hand, so I made some substitutions. The seasoning wasn't quite what I would've desired, but I think it was my fault. I'll never buy croutons again!
RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
BeachGirl
Edisto Island, South Carolina
I am a retired computer programmer, teacher, and cookbook author. Hubby and I have a grown daughter & SIL, son & DIL and 2 grandgirls. My favorite hobbies: cooking, Silhouette crafting, sewing, embroidery and wearable art, quilting, genealogy research, reading,
