6 Things you can do for a bit of ‘extra crust’ …

I love bread. Any kind of bread. Any time of the day, with any filling – sometimes none and I only like it brand spanking fresh.

As soon as too much air has hit it’s wonderfully soft thick and white surface, it is all over. I won’t touch it.

Bread fanatic?…YES!

Stupidly fussy?…ABSOLUTELY.

So I’m going to help myself with this strange obsession.

There is too much waste happening in my kitchen and when I saw 3 ratty bread bags with at least 4 slices in each just sitting looking miserable on the bench, I thought I’d better fix this stale situation.

It was an opportunity that was dying for a Tight Artist to save the day – again!

Dedicated to others out there that are also professionals in the field of wasting, here are 6 things you can do to save some cash, recycle your crusts and delight your taste buds;

It’s French for crust -If you haven’t had a Crouton before, you haven’t had the full experience of a thick creamy soup. Aside from the smooth texture and bursting flavours of soups, adding a snappy crunch somewhere in that spoonful takes it to a whole new level. Shape your bread into cube forms and spice them up for an second burst of flavours.

All you do is spray the homemade croutons with oil, grill until golden and add to your soup. Too easy.

Stuff it! – When your bread is getting to that stale stage, crumble it up and give it a short toast under a grill then once it has cooled down, rub in some finely chopped onion, parsley, garlic, a bit of butter, maybe a few other aromatic herbs and combine this mixture with an egg. Give it a taste, then change it up a bit with some salt and “mmmm”, good enough to eat on it’s own but definitely introduce it to your next roast chicken. Then make sure you call me with an invite.

Can you believe the French and Italians have been using stuffing as early as the 1500’s? Amazing.

Impress your guests – Show off some more culinary skills by shredding some bread into long strips or even roll into thin sticks. Then grill them until golden and crunchy. Take them out of the oven and arrange them on a plate or stand them tall in a glass. Offer a selection of exotic dips and spreads and ‘voila!’ you have the snack perfect for dipping.

I promise you there will be none left-over.

Garlic bread – Easily done with garlic butter bought at the supermarket, spread on your bread then grilled very slightly or, you can try a couple of variations of garlic bread with Mozzarella cheese melted in or maybe a dollop of Feta finished with fresh Tomatoes for a mouth watering treat. Best thing about this idea is you can have it anytime of the day and with any of your favourite meals.

Preparation time is less than 10 minutes – brilliant for when you’re on-the-go.

Get toasted – Yes the phrase may be world famous for it’s Champagne and glass cheering, but that’s not what I’m talking about here. I’m talking about the French introducing the art of dipping slices of bread into an egg mixture and then frying it. Topped then with berries and fruits, cream or honey, well really, whatever you like and you are experiencing an international favourite – French Toast.
Don’t let the word ‘toast’ restrict you from only cooking this for breakfast either. I once got taken out for lunch to a cafe in Melbourne and I ordered French Toast from the menu that was sprinkled with icing sugar, topped with a few strips of crispy bacon and served with a big ball of ice-cream on top.

Merci France!

‘What’s for pudding Mum?‘ – Now for families, the kids are going to love this idea. Especially because everyone can get their hands involved in this one. Shape bread into layered formations with a whole lot of sugar poured over it. Get a handful of raisins splattered in there. Next have a couple of eggs with some milk beaten together to then be poured all over the main event. Once it has all soaked in as much as possible, bake for around half an hour then let the family bring this dessert to life with some creamy custard or ice cream.

Apologies for anyone dieting this week as this is definitely not for you.

Who would’ve known that there are this many things you can do with leftover bread. There will now be zero excuses coming from my end as to why a whole loaf of bread can’t be finished and there’ll be plenty going on at the next dinner party I host!

Bread is such an ancient concept. It is connected to hundreds of cultures who altogether have truckloads of variations on bread-making and uses.

Now finally, bread has had the Midas touch from the Tight Artists who have brought back some excitement on such a traditional and once mundane staple in people’s lives.

Also big thanks to the French who helped us compile our list. Things will never be the same.

I TOAST TO US ALL!

(Yes, that was intended).