Oven baked croutons

Croutons are small cubes of bread baked in the oven with olive oil and seasoning and make a perfect topping for soups or salads. They can be prepared in minutes using ingredients you are likely to have in your kitchen and are good way to make use of stale bread. Other ingredients such as herbs, garlic or Parmesan can easily be added to suit your taste. The quantities in this recipe are sufficient for around 3 generous servings.

Ingredients

• 100g bread cut into small cubes - any type of bread can be used, even slightly stale bread, in fact this is a perfect way to make use of any old bread
• Sea salt
• About 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Before starting this recipe

Preheat the oven to 180^oC, 350^oF, gas mark 4.

How to make croutons

Start by cutting the the bread into small cubes. If the bread you are using has a thick crust it is better to cut this off and just use the central part of the bread. If the crust is soft it can be left on if you wish.

Place the cubes of bread in a bowl. Sprinkle a little salt evenly over the bread and then drizzle some olive oil over the bread cubes. Toss the bread taking care not to break or squash the cubes.

How to bake

Transfer the unbaked croutons onto a baking sheet.

Bake the croutons in the preheated oven until they start to turn golden. This is likely to take around 10 minutes or so but check after they have been in the oven for a few minutes and check again regularly. The croutons will bake quickly and some may cook faster than others particularly those at the edge and any small pieces. Toss part way through the cooking time so that they bake evenly. If some cubes look ready before others have finished cooking they can be removed from the tray before returning the rest to the oven to finish baking.

Leave to cool. Your homemade croutons are now ready to use or can be stored in an airtight container or frozen.

Tips

1. Use slightly stale bread rather than fresh bread as it will be easier to cut into cubes. Fresh bread tends to squash easily but can still be used if that is all you have.
2. Aim to cut the bread into similar sized cubes so that they will cook in a similar time.
3. Your baked croutons can be stored in an airtight container for several days. They can also be frozen and then defrosted in the oven when you wish to use them.
4. Other seasonings such as dried herbs, Parmesan, garlic or pepper can be added to the bread before baking. If you plan to add fresh herbs such as parsley it is better to add them after baking.
5. Sprinkle your crunchy croutons on top of a green leafy salad or a serving of soup such as minestrone or winter vegetable soup to add seasoning and texture.

Soup recipes to try with your croutons