Crescent City Croutons
Ingredients
- 227 g bread (day-old French bread)
- 3 T extra virgin olive oil
- 1 t garlic powder
- 1/2 T minced pickled garlic
- 1/2 t onion powder
- 1/2 t paprika
- 1/4 t ground cayenne pepper
- 1/8 t ground white pepper
- 1/8 t ground black pepper
- 1/4 t dried thyme
- 1/4 t dried basil
- 1/4 t dried oregano (optional)
Method
Preheat oven to 275F.
Cut French bread lengthwise as if for a long sandwich. Then cut the bread lengthwise with two or three cuts from top to bottom. Then cut the bread across to produce cubes of bread about 3/4" thick.
Place the cubed bread in a large bowl. Add all the seasonings to the bolw. Toss gently for several minutes, to ensure the seasonings are distributed evenly and that the oil is completely absorbed by the bread.
Arrange the croutons in a single layer on a baking pan. Place in oven, bake until crisp, about 20 - 30 minutes.
Allow the croutons to cool, place in a shallow serving bowl, and serve with salads.
Notes
SJ Note 19 March 2010: These are good! The original recipe has different directions for toasting the croutons; they didn't work at all for me, so I've revised that bit. Had this with Creole Caesar Salad. Made half of this size batch to begin with; this size will take one baton or half a baguette.