RECIPES: Regular Garlic Croutons

This article is not about the legendary Ukrainian donuts. Rather, about the bruschettes. Bruschetta is an Italian folk dish - toasted bread greased with olive oil and grated with a clove of garlic. In Russian - ordinary garlic croutons. I would like my article to be perceived not as a collection of recipes, but as a praise for this simple and healthy snack, which acts as a great alternative to regular bread.

I personally prefer simple option … I fry the slices of ordinary black bread, cut according to my mood, in an ordinary pan with ordinary vegetable oil. While frying, I add a little salt on both sides. When the pieces of bread are browned and covered with an appetizing crust, I remove them from the heat onto a plate.

I like to rub garlic on toasts while they are hot, so my fingers burn. For normal people, I still recommend letting the bread cool down a little. I rub the croutons with ordinary cloves of garlic - I'm lucky, I have it from my garden. All proportions of salt, garlic - to your taste. And that's it!

I prefer this one procedure … There is an option: first, rub the bread with a garlic-salt mixture (in this case, you just need to crush the garlic in a garlic maker) and then fry it. But, firstly, it turns out so less acutely (for someone a plus, for someone a minus). Secondly, fried garlic takes on a specific smell. It is not very pronounced and not disgusting, but the natural smell of garlic is still better. Thirdly, I cannot but remind you that after heat treatment, the beneficial properties of garlic decrease.

Little life hacks:

It is better to spread the bread in a frying pan preheated with butter. This will help it absorb less oil.
You can cook garlic croutons from dried bread or loaf.
After cooking, rub your hands with citrus fruits. They absorb the unpleasant smell of garlic well.

There is a cart and a small cart of different recipes, like people make garlic croutons. For example, someone uses exclusively Borodino bread, others sprinkle Provencal herbs, others add fillings, and still others recognize only garlic baguette or Caesar croutons. Therefore, in this article, it is impossible not to consider alternative options:

If guests arrive

There's a super quick garlic snack recipe. Cut rye bread, sprinkle with garlic salt (dried granulated garlic + salt) and fry in a pan with butter. It makes no difference to taste, and much less hassle. Top with grated cheese croutons.

If you have stomach problems

In a skillet preheated with butter (you can use butter), fry the coarsely chopped cloves of garlic for 3 - 4 minutes. Then remove the cloves and "bring to mind" the sliced pieces of black or white bread in a melted garlic-butter mixture. Croutons are obtained with a light garlic aroma.

I would also recommend in this case to completely abandon frying and simply bake white bread in the garlic mass (olive oil + crushed garlic + salt) in the oven.

If you need more than just a snack

If you are going to eat garlic croutons as a main course, you can put fish, tomatoes, ham, herbs on them. The most suitable and satisfying fillings: canned food, grated with a boiled egg, sprats + cucumber + mayonnaise, sour cream + cilantro and a slice of tomato.

If you prefer the "bright side"

Make a quick garlic baguette. The basis is white bread, a roll or, in fact, a baguette. You need to cut them into pieces without cutting to the end. Filling: finely chopped herbs + garlic (crushed or finely grated) + softened butter. Brush each piece of bread with this mixture and bake in the oven until golden brown.

Garlic croutons go especially well with any hot first: borscht, soup, broth. Especially during the cold season. There is no need to remind once again about the usefulness of such a folk product, and so everyone knows. But I would be very interested find out your recipes and the tricks of making garlic croutons, baguettes or bruschettes.