Just in time for the weekend, here's a fast kitchen project that will reduce waste, save you some money and impress your friends. If you have stale bagels or bread lying around, you can easily turn them into homemade crackers and chips. A true trash-to-treasure project for the kitchen.
All you do is slice the bagels in thin rounds and toast them on a cookie sheet at a low heat until they are dry and crunchy...250 degrees for 15-20 minutes works well in my oven.
They are done when they have a nice toasty color and a good crunch. Let them cool completely and then you can store them in an air tight container for a loooong time...if you can keep from eating them all first. They go great with dips in place of regular chips...I'm kind of partial to artichoke dip.
This technique works equally well with the last half of that baguette you never got to that is now rock hard on your counter...you know the one.
Slice off thin rounds and toast them up the same way...instant Melba toast! These bigger rounds are great for bruschetta and tapenades. Mmmm.
So that's it. If you don't have any stale bread laying around, day-old breads from the bakery work well too. Now go whip up a batch, invites some friends over for cocktails and snacks and have yourself a great weekend! XOXO, Cindi
