Homemade Croutons

I've tried making croutons before and they never turned out quite right. They were always oily and soft. Thankfully, after some trial and error, I've figured it out! One of the most important factors is the oven. Before when I made them, I would just brown them in a non-stick skillet with LOTS of butter. Turns out (much to my surprise!) there is such a thing as too much butter! What you need for these babies is "dry heat". I better just show you what I mean...

You'll need (for a small batch like mine):

3 slices of bread (I used Oatnut)

2 T butter

1 lg. garlic clove, minced

Freshly cracked black pepper



Preheat your oven to 350*.

Then get started with your bread and a bread knife.

Cut it in strips (about 1 inch apart).

And then again across the other way.

Toss the chunks in a large cast iron skillet.

(Yes, it does have to be cast iron.. Trust me, they'll be worth the seasoning and such later.)

Shut off the oven and stick the skillet in it for about 10 minutes. This will dry the bread out and make it easier to brown.

Pull them out, add the butter, and then turn on a medium - low flame .

Mince the garlic.

Toss that garlic in and then crack some pepper.

Keep stirring these! By now, the butter is probably gone, so they will burn fairly easy.

This is what I call "dry heat", there's no liquid or grease. Just heat and the bread.

Once they get to the color and crispness you want them, stick them back in the oven (it'll feel cooler now, but the heat from the cast iron skillet will warm it back up some.) and leave them sit for about 5 - 7 minutes. This finishes the drying out process, without browning/burning them any more.

Pull out and enjoy alongside a leafy salad!

Ashleigh

Copy, Paste, and Print for the recipe below.

Homemade Croutons 

(prairiegalcookin.blogspot.com)

You'll need (for a small batch like mine):

3 slices of bread (I used Oatnut)

2 T butter

1 lg. garlic clove, minced

Freshly cracked black pepper

Preheat the oven to 350* and then shut it off.

Chop your bread into chunks and then place them in a cast iron skillet and then in the oven for 10 minutes.

Pull it out and add the butter, garlic, and pepper. Stir constantly over medium flame. Keep stirring until it reaches the color and crispness you want and then place the skillet back in the oven for about 5 minutes.

Pull out and enjoy with a nice salad!