GARLIC PARMESAN CROUTONS

3 CUPS 1/2-INCH CUBED BREAD (ITALIAN, FRENCH, SOURDOUGH, ETC)
1 STICK BUTTER, MELTED
1 TABLESPOON PARSLEY
2 TEASPOONS GARLIC POWDER (NOT SALT!)
1/2 TEASPOON SALT
3 TABLESPOONS PARMESAN CHEESE
Preheat oven to 350

1. Melt butter in microwave. Add to large bowl, butter, parsley, garlic powder, salt and cubed bread. Toss and stir to make sure all bread is nice and coated. Once bread is coated, toss with Parmesan cheese.
2. Spread evenly on jelly roll pan in a single layer. Bake for about 15 minutes. Watch and make sure they don't burn, they are done with they are nice and golden brown.
3. Store in a Ziploc bag until ready to use.

This recipe is great to use for any left over bread you have. Especially to use those round ends that are on french and Italian loves that are so hard to use. Store the ends in a plastic bag in your freezer until you have enough to make a batch of croutons with. Don't be afraid to mix flavors of breads either. I used two kinds of breads to make these croutons shown.
Old dry bread is great to use to make croutons too, so don't throw it out! Add it to your bag of bread ends in the freezer until you get enough to make a batch. With summer salad season coming upon us, its a great time to have a bag of fresh croutons on hand :)

VANILLA EXTRACT - OVERRATED OR ESSENTIAL?

I have a confession to make, I ran out of vanilla extract. Not only did I run out of it, but I haven't used it in the last three recipes that called for it, and I DON'T MISS IT! All three dishes have turned out tasting very good, and I honestly didn't feel like the flavor was lacking in the least.

So I took to the all mighty internets, and found this Q & A:

Q: Almost all of the baking recipes I have used have called for vanilla extract. Is vanilla only included to add to the sweetness of a dessert? If I choose to substitute another kind of extract, such as almond extract, will the recipe not turn out correctly?

A: Have you ever tasted vanilla? If you have, you know it does not add any sweetness. In fact, it is one of the best smelling/foulest tasting items in your kitchen.

What it does add is an indescribable quality, a poetic quality, a depth, a richness – we would say a "je ne sais quoi," if it didn't make us blush so visibly.

You might have to compensate in the dish for the small amount of liquid your vanilla represents, but just leave it out of a recipe and you should be able to tell the difference right away. Or do as you suggest and substitute almond extract – we think you'll be shocked by the difference. It may turn out wonderfully and you may love it, but the difference between using vanilla and almond extract can be bigger than the difference between using butter and margarine. (We're not making any value judgments, just noting that there is big difference.)

On the one or two occasions we have forgotten to add vanilla extract to our semi-weekly batch of chocolate-chip cookies, we noticed right away that something was missing. They're still delicious, but they're much more one dimensional.

Vanilla functions a little like salt – it makes the other ingredients in your dish more interesting.


Hmmm, really? Are my taste buds failing me? If I ate two cookies, one with vanilla and one without would I be able to tell which was which? Would you? I don't know, but the next batch of cookies I make I'm going to be really tempted to put it to a test. Er, that is if I ever get to the store and buy me another vanilla.


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