Inspired by this wonderful video by Gourmet executive food editor Kemp Minifie, I decided to make my own breadcrumbs. I made mine exactly as Kemp did, except that I used my Kitchen Aid food processor instead of a blender – it did a beautiful job.
All I can say is – I’ll never buy bread crumbs again. Stay tuned for a great recipe for using these breadcrumbs.
Homemade Toasted Bread Crumbs
If you buy bread, and you’re like me, you’re probably wasting bread. I can’t tell you how many pieces of leftover bread I’ve thrown out over the years. Well no more. Save your leftovers or heels of the loaf in the freezer and use them to make bread crumbs. These crumbs store well in the freezer, but taste most amazing if used right away. You can toss a few fresh basil, oregano or parsley leaves before processing in if you want herbed crumbs.
Leftover Bread, cut or torn into pieces
Salt
Olive oil
Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahremheit. Place bread into food processor. Pulse till coarsely ground.
Spread the crumbs evenly out on a baking sheet and bake till golden brown – about 15-20 minutes – stirring them a bit about halfway through to assure even browning. Pour into a large bowl and toss with about 2 tbsp olive oil and salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.
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Gourmet Magazine’s Test Kitchen website has more great videos. No subscription is needed.
Cooks Illustrated also has great instructional videos, but they require a paid subscription.
Looking forward to the recipe. 🙂
When I was growing up, my mom always saved the heels and leftover bread slices in a loaf pan that she kept in the oven. Obviously she removed the pan whenever the oven was in use, but she would put it back into the oven while it was cooling, and voila! toasted bread. When the pan filled up, she'd crush the bread with a rolling pin for instant crumbs.
Now that I have my own kitchen, I do the same thing. The crumbs freeze well in freezer containers or ziploc bags. I generally don't let them toast too long in the oven, just long enough for the bread slices to get crispy and crumbly enough to crush with a rolling pin. You can always saute the crumbs with butter (adding a bit of minced garlic or anchovy is also good) if you want further toasting before using them as a pasta or casserole topping or whatever.
It's especially good when you can combine different kinds of bread – whole wheat, whole grain, etc. Yum!
(Sorry to come late to the party but your post inspired me to share.)
Anonymous –
Thanks for your comments and lovely rememberences. It's never to late to post a comment here, the party never stops 🙂
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