Homemade Croutons

Learn how to make this Homemade Croutons recipe – crispy, golden brown croutons that are perfect for all your favourite salads and soups! This crouton recipe is made with bread, butter or olive oil, dried herbs and salt, and baked to perfection in 15 minutes.

 

Estimated reading time: 8 minutes

If you’ve been a reader of The Busy Baker for awhile, you’ll know we love making food from scratch as much as possible, both to keep costs down and to ensure we’re consuming simple, healthy ingredients as often as possible. This homemade croutons recipe is one we’ve made hundreds of times – there’s nothing more tasty than homemade croutons on a fresh salad or creamy soup, and once you learn how to make croutons at home (and see how easy it is!), you’ll never go back to the store-bought ones!

Homemade croutons are a delicious topping for salads and soups made from day-old bread. They’re often tossed with a fat like olive oil or melted butter, along with salt, sometimes pepper, and other ingredients like herbs and spices, then baked or pan fried to crispy perfection.

Homemade croutons are best served fresh and crispy, and they can be made according to your family’s tastes and preferences, or made with specific flavours to compliment whatever dish you’ll be serving.

There are so many reasons we love this homemade croutons recipe. Here are just a few!

1. It’s EASY: You only need one bowl, a baking sheet, and a handful of ingredients to level up your soups and salads
2. It calls for SIMPLE ingredients: To make these homemade croutons you just need butter, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
3. It’s CHEAP: Homemade croutons are made with day-old bread and basic ingredients like oil or butter, and herbs and spices. They’re far more inexpensive to make at home than to buy from the store.
4. It’s FAST: In less then 30 minutes, you can have better than store-bought croutons, made with more nutritious ingredients and with a flavour profile that matches your preferences.
5. It’s GREAT for meal prep: Make a batch of croutons and use them throughout the week.
6. It LEVELS UP soups and salads: A good batch of homemade croutons bring your favourite blended soups and salads a new level of flavour. They elevate dishes with minimal effort and time.

Here are our favourite recipes we love to serve with these homemade croutons!

1. Easy Caesar Salad
2. Creamy Butternut Squash Soup
3. Crock Pot French Onion Soup With White Beans
4. Tomato Soup
5. Greek Yogurt Caesar Salad
6. Carrot Ginger Soup
7. Chef’s Salad with Egg
8. Pumpkin Soup
9. Olive Garden Salad
10. Halloumi Salad
11. Kale Caesar Salad with Bacon

Here’s how to make the BEST homemade croutons!

Choose high-quality, unsalted butter. The butter’s flavour is crucial since it’s one of the main components. European-style butter (German butter, Irish butter) with higher fat content (around 82%) can make this recipe richer and creamier. If you’re using olive oil, try to use a high quality oil for the best flavour.

Use your favourite blend of herbs or match the flavour profile of the herbs with the dishes you’re planning on serving them with.

Store your homemade croutons in an airtight container or a ziplock bag with a paper towel in it. They keep well for several days.

For best results, if you’re using them when they’re not fresh anymore, crisp them up in the oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 degrees Celsius) for a few minutes.

Running into trouble with this homemade croutons recipe? Here are common issues you might encounter, and how to fix and prevent them!

Make sure you spread out the bread cubes in a single layer on the baking sheet to allow proper airflow and even baking. Overcrowding them causes steam to be trapped between them and makes the croutons soggy. If your croutons are still soft and not crispy, shake them well on the sheet pan and bake them for 5 minutes longer.

Lower your oven temperature and shake them more often.

If you’d like more flavour on your croutons, feel free to increase the amount of herbs and seasoning in the butter or oil mixture or even add some grated Parmesan cheese. For a more robust flavour and a richer base, use old sourdough bread.

Shake or flip your croutons more often while also rotating the baking sheet.

You won’t need much to make these homemade croutons! Here’s the basic kitchen equipment you’ll need to make them (paid links):

• Cutting Board and a large knife
• large baking sheet
• mixing bowls

Here are the ingredients you’ll need to make these homemade croutons (paid links):

• 8 cups day old bread cut in 1 inch cubes
• 1/3 cup butter melted
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Want to try something new? You’ll love these delicious variations on the basic crouton recipe:

1. Cheese: Sprinkle 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese on the croutons before baking them.
2. Ranch: Sprinkle about 6 teaspoons of ranch mix over the croutons and the melted butter.
3. Garlic: Add a few minced garlic cloves for a more pungent garlic taste.
4. Spicy: Add 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper and 1/2 teaspoon of chili flakes to the butter mixture.
5. Greek: Swap out the butter for olive oil and the Italian seasoning for a mix of basil, oregano, and thyme.
6. Lemon Herb: Add the juice and zest of one lemon and a mix of rosemary and thyme to the butter mixture.
7. Sweet: Add 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and 1 tablespoon of sugar to the melted butter mixture and only use a pinch of salt. This variation is especially delicious served with pumpkin or squash soup in the fall.

• Greek Salad Dressing
• Chicken Salad
• Tomato Soup
• Olive Garden Salad
• Crock Pot French Onion Soup With White Beans
• Tabbouleh Salad (Tabouli)
• One Pot Pasta (Basic Recipe)
• Creamy Butternut Squash Soup