Frugal Friday certainly doesn’t mean that you are making your family eat half rotten salad in a bid to “win” (none of us would do that-right?).  Instead it is about respecting the ingredients that you have and making sure that they are not wasted.

Here is a real example.  I recently threw-out a very blue and fuzzy loaf of organic olive bread.  It hadn’t even been touched.  That is wrong on so many levels.  When I saw a loaf going stale (again) I was determined not to repeat this mistake. 

Here’s how I solved it.

Croutons!  It is just about the season where salads are an everyday occurance so croutons are desperately needed.  They can take a lunch “meh” salad and transport it into something really special.

Stale loaf of bread cut into one inch chunks-don’t go “all Martha” on me and measure them.  They are supposed to look rustic.

Toss with 1/4 cup of olive oil, 1 tsp chopped rosemary, 1 tsp. garlic powder, 1/2 tsp. chilli flakes (OR use the seasoning that you really enjoy).

Spread on a cookie sheet (I have a silpat sheet under them to aid clean-up) and bake until browned and crunchy at 330 (about 15 minutes).

Store in a container that the baby can empty at will when she wants a “schnack”.

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