There’s no time like the present to get back to the basic kitchen skills of knowing how to augment what you have in your fridge and your pantry to get more nutrients into every spoonful of food — and bread is one of the most versatile ingredients we can use.
How to Use Bread Crusts and Crumbs
Save every crumb caught on the cutting board and every odd end of every loaf in a container in the freezer. When you have a cup or two saved up, it is go-time. Chop or rip into smaller pieces and place into a blender while frozen. Whiz until it becomes tiny crumbs. Here are some ways to use them:
Thicken Soups
The very same breadcrumbs can be used to make a simple soup thickener. Try this: Heat 2 cups of any broth in a large pot for each person. Whisk with a fork one egg and ½ cup of breadcrumbs and mix into the broth, stirring all the time. Top with grated cheese.
Make Meatloaf and Meatballs
There is a tipping point to how many breadcrumbs can be used in a meatloaf to absorb, soften and extend the meat, so try this formula: Soak 1 cup of whole grain bread in ½ cup milk for 10 minutes. Stir a pinch of baking soda and salt into the meat to prevent it from compressing and drying. Add pepper plus any other
herbs you wish and one whole egg. Mix well with a fork into 1 pound of ground beef. Press firmly, but don’t compress into a loaf pan and bake at 350°F for 50-60 minutes.
Coat Cutlets
Grinding them into breadcrumbs and adding some seasoning is a simple way to make a crunchy coating for chicken fingers or veggie cutlets.
Food waste that goes into the landfill takes decades to break down and causes methane (a greenhouse gas) in
the process. We can do better by using every single morsel that we buy and only buying what we will use. It
could be that simple.
Make Your Own Breadcrumbs
Store-bought breadcrumbs are made from dried white bread and are nutritionally lacking, but you can make
your own from the healthy whole-grain bread you buy for sandwiches and bump up the nutrient density of
everything you are using it on. It isn’t just fibre that whole grain bread brings; because it is made with the whole grain, it retains all the other minerals and nutrients like B vitamins.
Homemade Gnocchi
http://harrowsmithmag.com/53735/homemade-gnocchiTo make gnocchi, all you need is salt, flour, water and breadcrumbs. Click here to read the full recipe.
Cheapie Crostini
https://www.harrowsmithmag.com/53736/cheapie-crostiniGot a few end scraps of that delicious sourdough but not enough to make a sandwich? A leftover hotdog bun? Make crostini by drying your bread. Click here to read the full recipe.
Savoury Bread Pudding
https://www.harrowsmithmag.com/53746/savory-bread-puddingThis is a savoury bread pudding that can be made the night before or baked ahead and then frozen. Click here to read the full recipe.
Storage Tips
Never store bread in the fridge; it hastens the change in texture. It will slow down moulding but will only be good for toasting. If your bread becomes a bit tough on the counter, simply splash it with a few drops of water, wrap it in foil and reheat in the oven at 350°F for 10 minutes.
Bread likes the freezer more than the fridge, so if you don’t think you will finish a loaf within a day or two, cut it in half and freeze it right away, wrapped in foil. To refresh, simply open the foil, splash it with cold water and pop it into the oven as above.
