Bagel Croutons
Turn leftover bagels into croutons for a delicious salad or soup topper! They’re deliciously chewy, crispy, and surprisingly easy to make!
If you’ve got a couple of bagels going stale on the counter, don’t toss them. Bagel croutons are a tasty way to use up a few day-old bagels. They’re a bit denser and chewier in the middle than baguette croutons, with big crunchy edges, and they hold up in a salad. Two bagels yield about 4 cups of croutons, enough for a couple of big salads or a week of soup toppings.
Bagels are sturdier than regular bread, so these croutons stay crunchy longer, even sitting on a dressed salad. It’s a five-ingredient recipe if you count salt, and one of the ingredients is bread you were about to throw away. If you want a higher protein option, try using Dave’s Killer Bread bagels! They still toast up like a regular bagel, but they have a little extra protein and fiber.
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Bagels: 2 plain bagels, preferably day-old or staler. Fresh bagels work too, they just take a little longer to crisp. Tear or cut them into bite-size pieces.
- Olive oil: You can drizzle with olive oil, or you can just use an olive oil spray if you want to use less oil.
- Salt: Bagels are already salted, so go lighter than you would with plain bread and taste before adding more.
Variations
Try adding a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese or everything bagel seasoning on top! You can also make croutons with other types of bagels. This works especially well with Asiago cheese bagels or everything bagels!
Ways to Use Croutons
These croutons are so good on your favorite salad, like this vegan Caesar salad, this grilled Caesar salad, or this goat cheese salad. But I also love adding croutons to soup like this garlic bread soup!
Other Ways to Use Your Bagels
If you have extra bagels on hand, try these lunchbox sandwiches or vegetarian breakfast sandwiches!
Print
Bagel Croutons
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 cups 1x
- Category: Salad
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
Turn leftover bagels into croutons for a delicious salad or soup topper! They’re deliciously chewy, crispy, and surprisingly easy to make!
Ingredients
- 2 plain bagels (about 8 ounces total), preferably day-old, torn or cut into bite-size pieces (about 4 cups)
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- Salt
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 400°F. On a rimmed sheet pan, toss the bagel pieces with the olive oil and salt until every piece is coated.
- Spread them out in a single layer and bake 10 to 15 minutes, tossing halfway, until crunchy and golden.
- Taste one and add more salt if it needs it. Cool on the pan.
