Croutons just got serious, y’all. My mind is buzzing with ideas on how to use these. But first things first.

Don’t judge me too harshly but I really never liked croutons. I’ll qualify that by saying they were usually from a box. And they were usually on a salad, which I wasn’t too crazy about either. What was my problem?!?

Nonetheless, I have to admit, that in my memory of croutons…they were just kind of there. All hard and boring and being a jerk about staying on my fork. So I had no problem avoiding them.

Then I learned how to brown butter.

Then I had a wildly stale baguette taking up space on my kitchen counter.

Then everything changed.

I made these for a salad recipe I have coming up as soon as I get permission to reprint the recipe for the best salad dressing on the planet here *fingers crossed*

But, in the meantime, you can eat these croutons with sooooo many things.

Ways to use homemade Croutons

• Sprinkle them on top of your macaroni and cheese.
• Put them in your soup.
• Dip them in your favorite dip when you’re watching the Big Game. [I don’t know anything else about this game so please don’t ask me! I just hear it’s coming up. So. Yay? Go, team?]

Or you could just *crunch* pop them in your mouth. One by *crunch* one. Which I may *crunch* or may not be doing right *crunch* now.

[clickToTweet tweet=”When’s the last time you got excited about #croutons? Never?? Check these out then…” quote=”Look smart and share these homemade croutons on Twitter.” theme=”style1″]

You’ll notice the brown butter flavor first and you’ll be like, “Wait. Did I just enter a world where croissants are square and crunchy and I can eat them on my salad?” AWESOME. And then, a little heat will sneak up on you. It’s a patient heat. And not overwhelming at all. Just a spicy little love note from the crouton to your tastebuds.

Awwwww.

These croutons are as easy to make as

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2

If you’ve never browned butter before there’s a great tutorial post on How Sweet It Is here.

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Please note: fake french accent not required for either the making or the enjoyment of the aforementioned croutons.

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Homemade Spicy Brown Butter Croutons

Prep Time

5 mins

Cook Time

8 mins

Total Time

13 mins

 

Servings: 2

Author: Christine

Ingredients

• 2 cups stale bread cubed
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 tablespoon sumac
• 1/2 tablespoon aleppo pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Cut the butter into small pieces and add to a small saucepan over medium to medium low heat.
3. Once butter is melted, start whisking almost continually.
4. Continue to whisk as butter bubbles and starts to foam.
5. I know it's almost there when it starts to smell like a french bakery in my kitchen.
6. At first sight of the little brown bits on the bottom, remove from heat.
7. Continue to whisk for about a minute.
8. Add spices and whisk to combine.
9. Pour butter over the cubed bread.
10. Arrange on baking sheet in single layer.
11. Bake for 8 minutes or until your preferred shade of golden brown.

Recipe Notes

Croutons should be made with bread that's at least a day old. The crustier the better. Do NOT cut the crusts away. They're the best part. I used baguette but I'm certain any bread would work. I'm planning to try sprouted whole wheat next!

**If you’re a food blogger and want to know how to do that little “jump to recipe” trick, Amanda from Striped Spatula has a quick and easy recipe jump tutorial on her blog. I think it’s great and am so happy Amanda shared it with me.**

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