What you do in your house is worth as much as if you did it up in heaven for our Lord God. We should accustom ourselves to think of our position and work as sacred and well-pleasing to God, not on account of the position and work, but on account of the word and faith from which the obedience and the work flow. ~ Martin Luther

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Ways to use oldish/stale bread



Recently my trips to Aldi have coincided *perfectly* with their bread sales of prices 50% off. That is, 50% off loaves of 12 grain bread that only cost a little over a dollar anyway. The same bread would be over $3.00 at the "regular" grocery store. Included in these sales were wheat bread, 12 grain, english muffins, bagels, etc. To get English muffins and bagels for .40 cents a PIECE? I loaded my cart up with them, fearing the deals would be gone at my next visit.

I stocked my freezer. FULL.

Then on Sunday, a gluten-free family brought in a BOX of breads that their family happened upon but could not use and another family brought more bread than was necessary at the potluck. It was divvied out and I was a large recipient. Who can say no to Rye and Pumperknickel and Marble bread, I ask?!? Surely not I!

But when I got home--I could not squeeze another loaf into the freezer if it would save my life. On the counter it all sat, until something could be done to it because I refuse to waste even a crumb of such delicious bread.

We've had plenty of elegant sandwiches using elegant breads we don't often get (BLTs on marble loaf were my most favorite in college and I ate them every single day---ahhhh, those were the days!), made a nice celebratory batch of rye dip, and took plenty of snitches just to nibble...but even then-it is a race to use it all before it goes bad. After all, these breads were already day-old when THEY first received them!

I've compiled a list of things to do with stale bread; things I have done in the past and things I plan to do in the future.

Make HASTE, not WASTE!

~ Make a strata

~Sliced day-old bread actually does better than fresh in making French toast

~ Smother it with Sausage Gravy (or any kind of gravy really) and you'll never notice!

~Bagels can be made into bagel chips

~English muffins (or bagels) can be turned into pizzas

~ Homemade stuffing will make you never open those sacreligious boxes ever again.

~Croutons

~Bread crumbs

~ Bread pudding. (I've never done this one before, but it would do the trick. I just don't know if it would TASTE good while doing it! hehe)

~
Make French Onion Soup and let it swim!

~ Make crispy Garlic bread

~Milk Toast
is something (I just learned) Matt grew up with on his SICK days. I had never heard of it before but apparently it does very well for tummy troubles. Make toast and then soak it with warm milk. Eat it with a spoon. Has anyone else heard of this or tried it? I'd love to know more about it...

~~~~~

If you find yourself with just an end piece of bread here and there, don't despair but don't waste it! You can pop it into a freezer bag and continue to do so until the bag is full, then use the frozen bits all at once.

~~~~~

To revive not too-far-gone bread, I often will microwave it for 30 seconds with a wet paper towel overtop of the bread. It warms and softens it, but you need to eat it relatively soon afterward.

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12 comments:

Bonnie said...

I love your kitchen. Mine is a mess at the moment(cranky baby who WON'T nap.), so I'll enjoy yours.

I think you covered all the bases with your bread, and I will remember your trick for reviving bread. I bake all ours (unless the good stuff is on sale buy one/get one)and it tends to dry out rather quickly, so your trick is good to know.
Now, off to find the make your own artisan cheese website from Hobby Farm Home...

Mrs. MK said...

The other day I made bread-crumb cookies from a bag of bits I'd been saving (aka The Tightwad Gazette). They were really good....any excuse to make cookies!

Mike & Mary said...

My Nanna used to give us kids toast with warm milk when our tummies were off, it was sometimes the only thing we could keep down and it did help our tummies feel better, not sure if its the combination of the two or what but it works.
your kitchen is beautiful and looks so cheery!

Peggy said...

Your kitchen looks dreamy! Ours is a mess right now...

Milk toast.. ugh... My mother-in-law loves it but I've never been able to keep it down even when well. It's a texture thing! Soggy bread does me in every time!

It looks like you got all the usual suspects for "stale" bread.

I've been praying for you recently! Please keep us in prayer. I'm having a hard time of it right now. It's been so cold for so long and the snow will be around for at least another month. In 3 days we will have had snow on the ground for 6 months! It's a good 3 feet high in the field right now...

Take care now,

Kalona said...

Mmm. I love bread pudding. If you like custard type desserts and comfort food, you'll probably like it. It tastes even better the next day, and is also good with a hard sauce or whipped cream. I have a yummy recipe for raisin bread pudding made in the microwave. Let me know if you'd like it. (You can use another kind of bread if you don't have raisin bread).

Rebecca said...

Kalona~ I'd LOVE the recipe if you are willing to share it! Thanks!

Peggy said...

Oh please do send the raisin bread pudding recipe! It sounds lovely! A friend used to make it and it was so good but I've never tried making it.

Peggy

Abigail said...

I second (third?) the support for bread puddings. I've loved every one I've ever made and every one I've tasted that others have made, in flavors from pineapple to fudge, from banana to almond. Yum. (But, as you know, when it comes to sweets, I'm not overly picky.)

One more idea for stale bread is panzanella. It's an Italian bread salad that usually has tomatoes, red onion, fresh basil, cukes, oil, and vinegar.

And for a sweet change of panzanella pace, you could try this one.

Three cheers for yummy carbohydrates, particularly when they're free!

p.s. Those lemony daffodils look perfect in your kitchen. Beautiful!

Kalona said...

Oh wow, lots of bread pudding lovers out there. :o)

The recipe is from The Complete Microwave Cookbook from JC Penney. I got in the 1980s.

Raisin Bread Pudding
Power Level: High
Approx. Cooking Time: 21 Minutes
Yield: 6 to 8 servings

1/4 C sugar
1/8 t ground cinnamon (or more)
3 C cubed raisin bread, 3/4" cubes
(4 to 5 slices)
5 eggs
1/2 C sugar
1 t vanilla
2 C milk
1/4 C butter
Whipped Cream (Optional)

1. In 1 1/2 qt. casserole, combine 1/4 C sugar and the cinnamon. Add bread cubes. Toss to coat. Set aside. In medium mixing bowl, blend eggs, 1/2 C sugar and the vanilla. Set aside.

2. In 4 C measure or small mixing bowl, combine milk and butter. Microwave at HIGH for about 4 minutes, or until milk is scalded. Blend into egg mixture.

3. Pour mixture over bread cubes. Cover dish with wax paper. Microwave at Power Level 5 (medium low) for 15 to 17 minutes, or until center is soft set, breaking up and pushing edges toward center with rubber spatula 2 times. Let stand for 10 to 15 minutes. Garnish w/whipped cream.

I use a 1 1/2 qt. square corning ware casserole dish for this and it's the perfect size. Enjoy!

Rebecca said...

Thanks so much Kalona~I'll try this out soon! Thanks for taking the time to share it!

Andie said...

My Dad grew up on milk toast...but it just sounds icky to me! Cold milk is the best!
Enjoy your abundance of yummy bread!
Blessings-Andie

hmsclmom said...

I grew up with milk toast. My mom says it's a New England thing. ;) I have had the flu for the past 2 weeks and homemade sourdough bread made into milk toast was one of the only things that sounded good and that I was able to enjoy.