Did you know that you can easily make your own Restaurant-Style Homemade Croutons from scratch with just a few basic ingredients?
It’s my personal opinion, but I feel that homemade croutons taste so much better than processed croutons you can buy in a store. As a matter of fact, these croutons are a mouthwatering snack all on their own (no salad needed)! Seriously, I can eat these by the handfuls! Oops, did I say that out loud?
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First of all, be sure to check out our Honey Mustard and Poppy Seed dressings that are excellent on salads.
Here’s how to make: Regular, Pumpernickel, and Gluten-Free Croutons.
Homemade croutons are a great way to use leftover bread. Bread that is actually on the dryer side is perfect for croutons, therefore it’s a great way to use bread that is on the edge of becoming stale. Consequently, you can buy bread on sale, freeze it and make croutons whenever you need them.
Regular Croutons:
If you prefer the crust can be left on the bread. However, if you do cut off the crust, place them into a bowl and set the bowl aside. While you won’t need these to make croutons, don’t throw them away because you can use them in other ways. You have probably guessed by now that every scrap of bread can serve a purpose.
Next, cut the bread into bite-size chunks and place them into a large mixing bowl. (A whole loaf of generic white bread was used in this particular recipe.)
Stir together melted butter, parsley flakes, garlic, sea salt, paprika, lemon pepper seasoning, and dill weed. Pour over the bread cubes and gently toss.
Place bread cubes evenly onto a greased baking pan and bake at 350 degrees for 30 – 45 minutes; or until croutons are golden brown. Gently stir croutons every 10 minutes making sure you bring the croutons from the corners of the baking pan to the center. For even browning of all the croutons, try to rotate them around the pan each time you stir them.
The longer you bake the croutons, the dryer and crunchier they will be. Also, the type of bread you use, the size of cubes, and how crunchy you want your croutons to be will determine how long you bake them. Finally, be sure to keep a close eye on them when they are almost finished baking because they brown quicker when almost finished. I baked mine for 30 minutes.
When croutons are golden brown remove them from the oven and cool completely. Store in an airtight container and use within 1 – 2 weeks. As much as I enjoy eating them like popcorn, they are perfect in salads, soup, or as a casserole topping.
Restaurant-Style Homemade Croutons
Ingredients
- 1/4 tsp Dill-weed
- 1/2 tsp Garlic
- 1 1/2 tsp Parsley flakes
- 1/4 tsp Lemon-pepper seasoning
- 1/4 tsp Paprika
- 1/4 tsp Sea salt
- 1 1/2 stick Butter
Instructions
- Cut the crust off the bread
- Cut into bite-size chunks, and place in a large mixing bowl.
- Stir together melted butter, parsley flakes, garlic, sea salt, paprika, lemon-pepper seasoning, and dill weed. Pour over the bread cubes and gently toss.
- Place bread cubes evenly onto a greased baking pan and bake at 350 degrees for 30 - 45 minutes; or until croutons are golden brown.
- Gently stir croutons every 10 minutes making sure you bring the croutons from the corners of the baking pan to the center. (The longer you bake them the dryer and crunchier they will be.)
Notes
The type of bread and the size of cubes you use will determine how long you bake them.
Be sure to keep a close eye on them when they are almost finished baking because they brown quicker when they are almost finished.
Pumpernickel Croutons:
Repeat the same process above by taking the crust off the slices of bread and cutting them into cubes and place in a bowl.
Drizzle olive oil over the bread cubes and sprinkle with garlic and sea salt.
Gently mix all together and place in a greased baking pan with 1-inch sides. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 35 – 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Cool completely and store in an air-tight container for up to two weeks.
Gluten-Free Croutons:
Use gluten-free bread and make sure that all of your spices and any additions are gluten-free as well.
What to do with those bread crusts?
While your croutons are baking, place a handful of breadcrumbs at a time into a blender, or food processor, and grate into crumbs. Place in a zip-lock baggie or air-tight container. Use as a topping for casseroles, as a filler in meatloaf, or whenever a recipe calls for breadcrumbs. The breadcrumbs will keep well in the freezer for months.
In conclusion: don’t be afraid to have fun experimenting with different seasonings such as taco seasoning, Cajun seasoning, etc…
I would love to hear what sort of combinations you have come up with!
Enjoy!
Linda
More great recipes:
Wayne says
And making the croutons do you use unsalted butter or regular butter
Blessed Beyond Crazy says
Hi Wayne!
You can use either salted or unsalted butter when making homemade croutons. It’s really your choice, however, if you need the croutons to be lower in sodium I would use unsalted butter. Enjoy!
Linda
Amy says
Hello!! How much bread should you use for this recipe? It’s a lot of butter, so I was just wondering how much bread you would estimate we use. Lol Thanks!
Blessed Beyond Crazy says
Hi Amy,
I usually use about 1/2 to 3/4 of a regular size loaf of bread. The size of your bread cubes also is a factor. I suggest starting with 1/2 loaf (approx. 10 slices of bread). Cut your bread into about 1-inch squares and go from there. You can always tweak it the next time you make them and use more or less bread. Please let me know how they turn out and if you have any other questions. Enjoy! Linda 🙂
Molly says
I grew up with my mom making homemade croutons. As a result, I won’t eat croutons out of a box or bag. They’re so disgusting! But we leave the crust on when we make the croutons. I like the crust. Mine are a bit simpler with garlic, parmesan & a butter/olive oil mix. Looking forward to trying your suggested seasoning mix.
Blessed Beyond Crazy says
Hi Molly,
I agree. There isn’t any comparison between homemade and purchased croutons. I had left the crust on before too and they are delicious either way. Thanks for stopping by and hope you like this recipe. Enjoy!
Linda
Ginny says
Tasty sounding recipe. I bet these croutons are very flavorful and I can’t wait to make them. I’ll definitely buy generic white bread. That’s right up my alley with the prices of bread being sky high…lol
You listed 1/2 tsp. of garlic. But what kinda garlic, powder or minced? Thanx.
Blessed Beyond Crazy says
Hi Ginny,
I used powdered garlic. It will spread more constantly and not be overly powerful in your croutons. This is definitive a recipe for stale bread or generic bread. Hope you enjoy it as much as we do. Have fun!
Linda
Cheri says
I am like you… I LOVE croutons and I do eat them right out of the bag. I have never taken the time to actually make them myself but you have certainly prompted me to consider it. It’s doesn’t seem that hard and then I can have a whole container to eat for myself! Yikes – I did say that out loud. LOL
Blessed Beyond Crazy says
Hi Cheri,
Yep… these croutons are so easy to make. They just take a little time. My husband and I hosted a party tonight and everyone… I mean everyone…even the little kids… loved these croutons. I need to make another batch soon! If you ever try them I think that you will really like them. Thanks for stopping by.
jhanis says
Those look good! and I don’t think I will still need a salad to enjoy them! 🙂
Blessed Beyond Crazy says
Thank you! I am telling you the truth when I say I can eat these croutons like popcorn! I even ‘caught’ my husband eating them right out of the container last night before dinner! Ha! The best part is that it is super easy to change the spices to make them exactly to your taste. Thanks so much for your comments and for stopping by!