Homemade Croutons in the Oven
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Homemade Croutons in the oven are so easy to make with only a few ingredients! Bread, olive oil & spices are baked until perfectly crispy!
We’ve perfected the absolute best homemade croutons – crunchy texture, delicious, so easy to make, and pair well with any salad.
Not only are these croutons tastier than the store-bought croutons, but they are also so much healthier for you and don’t include any weird ingredients – just bread, oil, and spices.
In just 30 minutes, you can have the best salad toppers that you will make again and again!
These vegan croutons are perfect on any salad for any diet. Once you try homemade, you’ll never go back—plus they’re so easy to toss together and bake!
liz’s tip for homemade croutons
- Make sure to evenly coat the bread cubes in olive oil! It’s important that you get the bread evenly coated in olive oil. This helps the spices adhere to the bread, and it also ensures that they bake up super crispy with the perfect crunch!
Ingredients
SUBSTITUTIONS
Bread: I have made these croutons with all different kinds of bread, but sourdough bread is the best! We also really liked them made out of cranberry walnut bread. You could also try a baguette or ciabatta. I wouldn’t recommend using thinly sliced loaf of bread (like sandwich bread) because the croutons will be too thin!
Olive Oil: You can substitute avocado oil for olive oil, but we don’t recommend it because olive oil tastes better.
Spices: You could substitute dried basil with dried parsley; you may also be able to use Italian seasoning. Don’t use fresh herbs!
How to make croutons in the oven
- In a bowl, drizzle olive oil over cubed bread and toss to evenly coat.
- Sprinkle spices over the bread and toss evenly, making sure they are coating each piece.
- Pour cubes onto a parchment lined sheet pan.
- Bake at 425° for 10 minutes. Flip and continue to bake for 10-15 minutes, checking for doneness during the last 5 minutes.
Storage
Store these easy homemade croutons in an airtight container for up to a week at room temperature. (I highly doubt they’ll last that long!)
Because there are no preservatives, they can get moldy after a week.
Salad Recipes to serve with croutons
Here are some of our favorite salads to add these croutons to:
- Peach Salad (pictured above)
- Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad (pictured below)
- Apple Cranberry Walnut Salad
- Kale Salad Recipe
- Chicken Cobb Salad
- Blueberry Salad
- Strawberry Arugula Salad
You can even pair with soup! Try with Tomato Soup, French Onion Soup, or Healthy Chili.
Homemade Croutons in Oven
Ingredients
- 6 cups cubed bread cut in 1 inch square cubes, we like sourdough
- 3 tablespoon olive oil
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and prepare a parchment lined baking sheet.
- In a large bowl, add cubed bread. Drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat the bread evenly. (This is important, you want the bread to be coated with olive oil before adding your spices!)
- Add salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion and basil to the bread cubes. Use a spatula or your hands to toss the bread with the spices until they’re evenly coated and sticking to the bread.
- Pour the cubes on to the parchment lined baking sheet, spreading out in an even layer.
- Bake at 425 for 10 minutes, then flip and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes. Check the croutons at the 20 minute mark, they burn quickly, but may need another 1-5 minutes depending on your oven!
Video
Grilled chicken Caesar salad with these yummy croutons tonight!
We all know croutons are the best part of a salad 🙃 and these did not disappoint! Easy to make, crunchy, yet melts in mouth. These pair PERFECTLY on a salad with the Clean Eating Couple homemade Caesar Salad Dressing recipe!