Bread Machine (219 page)
B
readcrumbs, toasted croutons, and small toasts are practical and delicious uses for day-old bread. Breadcrumbs B may be fresh or dried, and are sometimes seasoned. Fresh and dried are not interchangeable in recipes, as the dry crumbs absorb more liquid than the fresh. (Be sure to check your recipe to avoid using the wrong type.)
Croutons, melba toasts, rusks, crostini, and classic plain toasts are all variations on the same toasting process. Any type of sliced homemade bread, from white to wheat to rye, can be given a new life by being slowly dried in an oven, sautéed in a skillet, toasted under a broiler, or even grilled over an open fire. All these toasts are usually a garnish of some type, but do not underestimate the grand roles these humble toasts may play—they can be piled high in a basket to accompany dips or pâtés, or spread with cheeses, herbs, or garlic. Butter croutons may be folded into scrambled eggs. Or they can serve as just the right crisp complement to salads or soups. Who has not enjoyed croutons floating atop a bowl of French onion soup? These toasts can be the basis for myriad toppings, tea sandwiches, and canapés. Bruschetta, an Italian toast, is traditionally topped with a flavorful combination of tomatoes and herbs and may be made as a sweet toast as well. Recipes for toppings and sandwich fillings—in addition to instructions for many different toasts—are given here.
Croutons, melba toasts, rusks, and crostini can be in the form of plain old slices, or they may be cut with a biscuit or cookie cutter, making a pretty assemblage of squares, rectangles, diamonds, or hearts. A famous garnish is
dents de loup
, or wolves’ teeth, where a long 4-inch toast has one side cut jagged. You can cut off the crusts, or leave them on. When making tea sandwiches or appetizers, the different shapes help vary the presentation.
Tear or cut thick slices of bread, with or without crusts, into pieces. Some bakers save bread ends and crusts to make breadcrumbs. Place the bread pieces in a food processor and grind until coarse, even crumbs are formed. When preparing a recipe, measure crumbs using a dry measuring cup, and don’t pack them in or you’ll lose the fluffy quality. Three ounces of fresh bread will make about 1 cup of crumbs. Keep the crumbs in an airtight container at room temperature and use within 2 days, or freeze the crumbs in plastic freezer bags.
Tear or cut day-old bread, with or without crusts, into pieces. Preheat the oven to 300°F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper and spread out the bread pieces on the baking sheet. Bake until they are dry and golden, about 30 minutes. Let them stand at room temperature to cool completely. Grind the bread in a food processor, in small batches, until the desired degree of fineness is reached. Transfer the breadcrumbs to a dry airtight container. Dry breadcrumbs will keep for 1 month, but I use them within a week.
VARIATION
Seasoned Dry Breadcrumbs
For Italian-style seasoned dry breadcrumbs, grind the toasted bread into coarse crumbs; then add 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese and
1
/
2
teaspoon
each
dried marjoram and basil for every cup of fine dry bread crumbs. Continue grinding to the desired degree of fineness.
Just about any good homemade bread—egg, pumpernickel, herb, or whole wheat—makes good salad or soup croutons.
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Slice bread into
3
/
4
-inch-thick slices, then cut the slices into cubes. Place the cubes on an ungreased baking sheet. Drizzle them with melted butter or olive oil, and bake until dry, about 10 to 15 minutes, stirring about every 5 minutes to keep from burning. Remove the croutons from the oven when just golden, and drizzle with more melted butter or oil. Croutons are best used the day they are made. They can also be frozen for up to 2 months.
VARIATION
Toss the croutons with fresh pressed garlic or sprinkle them with a few tablespoons of grated Parmesan or chopped fresh parsley while they are still hot.
Float these large croutons in bowls of soup or tuck them in alongside salads. For some recipes you may want to make the croutons as large as half the slice of bread.
Cut day-old bread of any savory type into slices
1
/
2
inch to
3
/
4
inch thick, or split day-old rolls in half horizontally. Cut the slices into quarters or eighths. In a sauté pan or skillet, sauté them over medium heat in butter, olive oil, or an equal combination of the two. Turn them as necessary, until the slices are crisp and golden brown. Remove the croutons with tongs, drain them on paper towels, and serve immediately.
These can also be made under a broiler, over a charcoal fire, or in the oven; toss the croutons in oil before preparing them one of these ways.
These croutons are excellent floated in cream soups such as asparagus, carrot, broccoli, pumpkin, fresh green pea, and zucchini.
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Slice bread into 1-inch-thick slices and cut into cubes. Place the cubes on an ungreased baking sheet. Drizzle them with olive oil and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons minced fresh herbs for every 2 to 3 cups bread cubes. Toast the cubes in the oven until they are dry, stirring often, about every 5 minutes, to keep from burning. Croutons are best used the day they are made.
In France these are known as sliced
croûtesen dentele.
There is a story in one of actress Shirley MacLaine’s autobiographies in which she was depressed after the breakup of a relationship. As she sat in her hotel room in Stockholm, she ate an entire box of melba toasts spread with butter, because they were so tasty, while contemplating the ramifications of the breakup. Every time I crunch my way through pieces of melba with butter—a delight everyone should partake of at least once—I remember her story. Melba toast is also a perfect accompaniment to pâté.
Preheat the oven to 300°F. Cut 1 loaf of firm day-old or frozen bread into
1
/
4
-inch-thick slices; then cut them diagonally in half or in quarters, depending on the size you want. Place cut slices in a single layer on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until they are crisp and evenly golden. Remove the toast from the oven and cool completely. Melba can be made a day ahead and stored in an airtight container at room temperature.
Rusks, like melba toasts, are slices of yeast bread that have been dried in the oven until crisp. If you make your rusks with a sweet bread like panettone or cinnamon bread, they are suitable to serve for breakfast with jam or cream cheese and coffee or tea, or for dessert with puddings or ice cream.
Preheat the oven to 300°F. Cut 1 loaf firm day-old or frozen bread into slices 1 inch thick and lightly spray with a butter-flavored cooking spray. Sprinkle one side of each slice lightly with brown or white sugar. Cut the slices diagonally into halves or quarters, cut out shapes with a biscuit cutter like hearts or half moons, or cut the slices into thick fingers, depending on the size and shape you want. Place the bread in a single layer on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until they are crisp and evenly golden. Let the rusks cool completely. These can be made a day ahead and stored in an airtight container at room temperature.
Serves 6
Prepare this recipe to serve with
Hummus
,
Roasted Eggplant Dip
,
Hot Artichoke Dip
, or any of the other dips in the following appendix. If you’d like to make a lowfat version of these crisps, brush the smooth side of the pitas with an egg white that has been beaten until foamy instead of with the olive oil; then bake as instructed in the recipe.
6 homemade pitas
Whole Wheat Pita
1
/
2
cup olive oil
Preheat the oven to 300°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Split open each pita horizontally, making 2 thin rounds. Brush the smooth side of each round with olive oil. Place the rounds in a single layer on the baking sheet. Bake until crisp, about 20 minutes. Spread out the crisps on wire racks to cool completely; then break each round into 5 irregularly-shaped pieces. If the pitas lose their crispness before serving, reheat them for a few minutes in the oven.
Makes 48 toast triangles
These toasts are baked for a much longer time than the Pita Bread Crisps, so they turn out more like a melba toast.
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1
/
3
cup olive oil or walnut oil
1 to 2 cloves garlic, crushed
6 homemade pitas
Whole Wheat Pita
Kosher or sea salt, for sprinkling
Preheat the oven to 300°F. Combine the butter, oil, and garlic in a small saucepan. Heat until the butter is melted. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut each pita into quarters, then separate the top and bottom layers so you have 2 tri angles from each. Place the triangles on the baking sheet, rough side up, in a single layer. Brush the rough side lightly with the garlic mixture. Sprinkle the triangles with salt. Bake for about 50 minutes, until crisp and lightly golden. Serve at room temperature. Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Any plain focaccia can be made into crostini and used as you would crackers for an appetizer. The crostini end up looking like oversized rusks. Use
Italian Whole Wheat Flatbread
,
Schiacciata
, or
Wine Focaccia
. Store these toasts in an airtight tin for up to 3 days.
Leftover homemade focaccia, sliced into
1
/
3
-inch-thick slices
Olive oil or olive oil cooking spray
Coarse sea salt, optional
Preheat the oven to 300°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. The slices of focaccia will be as long as your baking pan was wide. Brush each side of the focaccia with olive oil, or spray with olive oil cooking spray. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt, if desired: I prefer them plain. Arrange the focaccia sticks in a single layer on the baking sheet. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the toasts are very crisp and lightly browned around the edges. They will be completely dried out and not at all soft. Cool the toasts on racks before serving.
Makes 20 pieces
The baguette shape is perfect for slicing and baking into little toasts to be used in place of crackers. Use fresh or day-old bread.
Twenty
1
/
4
- to
1
/
2
-inch-thick slices
Classic Baguette
or
Pain de Paris
1
/
3
cup extra-virgin olive oil or olive oil cooking spray
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Arrange the bread on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush or spray both sides lightly with olive oil. Bake until lightly toasted, about 5 minutes. Let cool and serve immediately or store in an airtight container.
Makes 24 large crostini, serves 8
This is a convenient alternative to brushing oil or butter on the croutons.
6 slices country bread, quartered diagonally, to make 24 pieces
2 cloves garlic, peeled
Olive oil cooking spray