Stale bread

[Bondbug 32]

What do you do with your stale bread, apart from slinging it in the bin or giving it to the chickens.

 

I saw 'gypsy bread' mentioned somewhere which is, I think, what I call 'eggy bread' and the French call 'pain perdu' - I.e. bread dipped in beaten egg and fried.

 

But we tried an Italian recipe a couple of weeks back which worked quite well.

 

Tomato and Bread Salad: quick to prepare, but needs lots of waiting time!

 

400g / 14 oz stale bread (any sort)

4 large fresh tomatoes

1 large red onion; or 6 spring onions (whatever they may be called in your part of the world)

A few leaves frech basil for garnish

 

for dressing

4 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp white wine vinegar

salt and black pepper

 

Cut bread into thick slices. Soak in cold water for 20 minutes.

Cut tomatoes into chunks, put in serving bowl, add finely sliced onions

Squeeze as much water out of the bread as you can, and add to the vegetables in the serving bowl.

Make the dressing, add to the salad, and mix well.

Decorate with basil leaves

Allow to stand in a cool place for 2 hours before serving

 

Edited June 9, 2007 by Bondbug

[myles 2]

I just chop and bake them into crispy salad bread (is that how you call those crunches?).

 

Your way is surely more impressive though. I must give it a whip soon.

 

[Indy13 5]

And how stale can that bread be?

 

Can it be moldy already?

[Bondbug 32]

Why not! Good for you, but if you don't like it take it off with a wire brush.

[gogoblender 3,071]

If it's not too old to be used for penicllin, I'll usually just toast it. I read somewhere that this "freshens" up bread. In the oven with some butter and garlic on top...

Delicious

Though I'd rather wait for the Penicillin

 

gogo

[Carolyn Hacker 0]

I saw 'gypsy bread' mentioned somewhere which is, I think, what I call 'eggy bread' and the French call 'pain perdu' - I.e. bread dipped in beaten egg and fried.

lol, we call it "French Toast" where I live. Food & culture make for some funny combinations sometimes.

 

There's something I make where I let the bread intentionally get stale, I suppose you could do it with any stale bread (although personally I think the thinner the slices the better. I cut a baguette in half lengthwise, then slice it as thin as possible then let it sit out a few days to get stale).

 

Mix butter/margarine with any spices & sauces you like. You can also add a bit of water to cut the fat content if you're not feeling as indulgent as I usually am. We usually use A1 sauce, garlic, soy sauce, and cayenne. Saturate the bready bits with the mixture as much as you can without making it go all crumbly. Lay in a flat layer on a cookie sheet and bake in a med (325-350) oven slowly, turning every 15 minutes until they're browned and crispy all the way through. Note that if you use darker sauces like A1 in your mix, when it gets "perfect" it looks kind of burned but isn't really.

 

If you're a salt junkie like me you'll also want to sprinkle a bit of flakey "finishing salt" on top of the bread while it's still wet when you first put it on the baking sheet, then sprinkle a bit more on the other side the first time you turn it.

[Borg 0]

Carolyn if your a salt junkie check out this site you might find in informative

http://www.realsalt.com/about.cfm

[Carolyn Hacker 0]

Thanks Borg I've actually seen that site before, but they don't offer enough variety for me. My current favorite is http://www.saltworks.us/, and from their offerings my #1 favorite is Australian Murray River pink flake salt (lol, I've actually got a small dish of it sitting on my desk right now for nibbling), but I'm looking forward to trying the cypress flake salt. For me, flavor is good (for example Fleur de sel does taste a bit different than regular table salt), but differences in texture are what it's all about. I use different kinds for different things - my Murray river salt is ideal for the stale bread recipe, and the Welsh flake salt (because the flakes are significantly bigger) is ideal for coating a roast in before baking.

 

hahaha, ok, I shouldn't admit this, but here's how big a salt junkie I am...

For my 10th wedding anniversary, when asked to pick the present I most wanted, I picked a selection of different salts from that website, and this book (which is a fascinating historical view of salt, it's kind of like the page you linked raised to the uber power) :rolleyes:

[Bondbug 32]

Salt? We have just had a big festival along the river Loire. The old traditional river boats bringing up sea salt from the salt pans at Guérande. Took at least a month, with a two or three day fête at each town on the way.

Don't know if it was profitable, but they sure had a good time.

[Carolyn Hacker 0]

Don't know if it was profitable

I'm sure it will be in the end, that stuff costs a small fortune over here (and works almost as well as my Australian stuff for the stale bread crisps I posted earlier in the thread. It's got a nice sharp taste and good crunch ).

[Bondbug 32]

Another dry bread recipe:

 

(Brown) Bread Ice-cream (not exactly quick)

 

6oz (wholemeal) bread crumbs, coarse texture

half pint (275/300ml) double cream

8fl.oz (225ml) single cream

4 oz (100/125ml) soft brown sugar

2 eggs, separated

1 tablespoon rum

 

a) Spread the breadcrumbs on a baking tray, toast under a medium grill till crisp and lightly browned. Stir frequently and avoid over browning

b) Whip the double and single cream with the sugar till it holds a soft peak

c) Beat the egg yolks with the rum and stir into the cream

d) Fold in the breadcrumbs, pour mix into an ice tray, cover and freeze for 1 hour

e) Whisk the egg whites till stiff

f) Scrape the half-frozen ice-cream into a chilled bowl, stir well.

g) Fold in the egg whites

h) Put it back in ice tray, cover and freeze for at least 2 hours.

I) Move to fridge half an hour before serving

j) (optional) apricot or chocolate sauce.

 

 

NB I have spent about an hour trying to get this image size down at Photobucket. Now avatar size but still no change this end. Sorry

 

For a quick option you could use commercial ice cream at stage b) suitably softened for half an hour, work quickly and cut out d) and f) but I cant guarantee it will be as good.

Edited June 15, 2007 by Bondbug

[fRACTAL 0]

Ok this one works for stale and none stale, do it with french loaf or bloomer, anything with a hard crust..

cut pieces, brush them with olive oil and bake till golden brown on both sides.

Then apply topping of your choice.

Basil pesto with pepper works well (tomato and cucumber also work)

cottage cheese works

~Doom

[erialc 2]

Stale bread in our house gets wizzed in the food processor. Then it gets herbs and some seasoning (lots of paprika) added and is used for coating chicken pieces and viola home made chicken nuggets....yummy!

[Bondbug 32]

At least those two are both quick and nice....and bread crumbs is a whole new ball game.