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| At the cottage, considering canapés. |
As per last year, and the year before that, I continue to stockpile half-eaten loaves of bread in the microwave at the cottage. I no longer have a microwave at home in the city because I only ever used the one I had as a giant butter-melter. However, it's great to have this type of ant-secure breadbox at the cottage. The thing fills up and that's when I use a little olive oil, kosher salt and fresh rosemary to make a transformation.
How to make increasingly stale bread edible…..
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Slice and cut the stale bread into pieces approximately 4 by 4 cm. A baguette works well but Wonderbread will do.
Place the pieces of bread in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt and freshly chopped rosemary. Rosemary is a strongly flavoured herb so a little goes a long way. Alternatively, you can drizzle the bread with olive oil and sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese. Place the pan in the preheated oven and allow the bread to toast for anywhere from 5-25 minutes. This is all highly dependent on your oven (some are hotter than others), the thickness of the bread, and its moisture content. Check it frequently. The longer you leave it in the oven the crunchier it becomes. My preference is to remove the toasts as soon as they begin to turn a golden brown. Allow them to cool and then package in an airtight container. Serve that same day with cheese, chopped liver, and dips or use the toasts as the base for bruschetta.
The toasts that you see in the photo below were made from a fairly rustic loaf. Think I'll serve them with a large chunk of cheddar.
As per last year, and the year before that, I continue to stockpile half-eaten loaves of bread in the microwave at the cottage. I no longer have a microwave at home in the city because I only ever used the one I had as a giant butter-melter. However, it's great to have this type of ant-secure breadbox at the cottage. The thing fills up and that's when I use a little olive oil, kosher salt and fresh rosemary to make a transformation.
How to make increasingly stale bread edible…..
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Slice and cut the stale bread into pieces approximately 4 by 4 cm. A baguette works well but Wonderbread will do.
Place the pieces of bread in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt and freshly chopped rosemary. Rosemary is a strongly flavoured herb so a little goes a long way. Alternatively, you can drizzle the bread with olive oil and sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese. Place the pan in the preheated oven and allow the bread to toast for anywhere from 5-25 minutes. This is all highly dependent on your oven (some are hotter than others), the thickness of the bread, and its moisture content. Check it frequently. The longer you leave it in the oven the crunchier it becomes. My preference is to remove the toasts as soon as they begin to turn a golden brown. Allow them to cool and then package in an airtight container. Serve that same day with cheese, chopped liver, and dips or use the toasts as the base for bruschetta.
The toasts that you see in the photo below were made from a fairly rustic loaf. Think I'll serve them with a large chunk of cheddar.
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| Dainty they are not. |
Please note that this recipe will work with fresh bread
as well as stale bread; it does not work with mouldy bread.
