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Learning how to make breadcrumbs is an essential baking skill and totally worth it. Make better food by learning cooking skills that can lift you up.
Thus far in our macaroni and cheese series, we have not used any breadcrumbs, but that is about to change. I intentionally left them out of recipes, thus far, as I do not think that breadcrumbs are an essential part of a traditional macaroni and cheese. My traditional macaroni and cheese recipe is heavy enough that it just does not need more. I do respect, however, that so many people do like breadcrumbs as a topping for a baked macaroni and cheese dish. So today, we are going to show you how to make breadcrumbs and I am going to use them in some upcoming recipes that I do think need it.
This recipe uses fresh bread, but a similar technique could be used if you have crusty, hard, and not yet moldy bread.
How to make breadcrumbs summary
The idea is that we are going to dry out the bread and make it nice and crispy. In our case, we are going to use fresh bread and make it crispy in the oven. Then, we are going to add the bread and some seasonings to a food processor and pulse. The result should be a nice and easy Italian style breadcrumb that should go great on macaroni and cheese.
How To Make Breadcrumbs – My Breadcrumb Recipe
- Prep Time: 20 Minutes
- Cook Time: 25 Minutes
- Total Time: 45 Minutes
- Yield: 5 Servings 1x
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Italian
Description
How to make breadcrumbs! This breadcrumb recipe is simple and easy, but very tasty and great for a macaroni and cheese dish.
Ingredients
- 4 oz bread
- 1 tablespoon dried Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
Instructions
- Cut bread into 2 inch squares
- Lay squares on a cookie sheet
- Bake for 25 minutes
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes
- Add all ingredients to food processor and pulse until breadcrumb consistency
How have I never made my own breadcrumbs before?! This is so easy, and now I can stop complaining about the poor quality of what I find at the store! 🙂
I love making my own breadcrumbs! We always seem to have leftover bread, so I’m glad to have a way to use it. I will part ways with you, though, and say that my favorite takes on mac and cheese nearly all have a crunchy seasoned breadcrumb topping. Yum! 🙂
This is great, I never thought to use my own breadcrumbs. Fantastic!
What a genius recipe! How long can you keep fresh breadcrumbs?
I am not 100% sure. I would guess a week or so, but maybe longer.
I store my breadcrumbs in the freezer, so they never go off!
What a great idea! I’ve never thought to make my own breadcrumbs. Definitely going to try this out !
simple but rich but rich of flavor. Love the idea adding those seasoning . thx for sharing
I love this! I am always trying to come up with great idea and recipes to keep my pantry stocked instead of having to good with store-bought. Pinned!
Thanks, Carrie!
Such a good idea and a great way to use up some leftover bread which I just happen to have from another recipe!
No doubt. It is awesome when you can take what was left from one recipe and make another. I also make croutons from bread on the edge.
I know making breadcrumbs in pretty easy, but for some reason I never do it. Thanks for the inspiration!
I’ve never made breadcrumbs before, but I really need to do that…because I use them all the time and just buy them in the grocery store. And, I just happen to have some bread that’s perfect for it!