Many cuisines, the world over, include dishes featuring some sort of a crouton—but making croissant croutons is really a level up. 

　　Pieces of dried bread are the key ingredient in panzanella, the simple yet perfect Tuscan tomato and bread salad. Caesar salad utilizes little crunchy croutons to add textural depth to a creamy, salty dish that masquerades under its healthy ‘salad’ banner (I mean, remove the cos lettuce and you basically have a deconstructed hangover fry-up). Fattoush, originating from Lebanon, uses leftover pita, fried and tossed with in-season chopped vegetables and herbs, often garnished with zingy sumac. There are but three examples, and we’ve only considered the category of salads!

　　The myriad of soups that are likewise infinitely improved when garnished with a handful of croutons (I’m looking squarely at you, French onion), make this use of leftover croissants one of the easiest, yet most powerful kitchen weapons you can possess.

　　This recipe was excerpted from ‘Lune’ by Kate Reid. Buy the full book on Amazon.

　　

Ingredients

Day-old croissants

　　Olive oil, for drizzling

　　Sea salt flakes

　　Ground black pepper

　　

Step 1

Allow leftover croissants to rest for at least one night to become stale and dry out.

　　

Step 2

The following day, preheat your oven to 310°F. Cut each croissant into four or five large slices, then cut or tear the slices into rough pieces, approximately 1 in.

　　

Step 3

Lay the pieces out on baking tray in a single layer, being careful not to overcrowd the tray. Drizzle the croissant pieces with olive oil, then season generously with sea salt flakes and pepper.

　　

Step 4

Bake for 15–20 minutes, tossing the croutons on the tray every 5 minutes, until they are crisp and reach a deep golden color all over.

　　

Step 5

Allow to cool to room temperature before adding to your salad or soup of choice.

　　Excerpted with permission from Lune by Kate Reid published by Hardie Grant Books. Buy the full book from Amazon or Hardie Grant Books.