Parmesan Croutons
Updated Nov 17, 2025
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Turn cubes of bread into golden, cheesy homemade Parmesan croutons. With good olive oil, real Parmesan cheese, and fresh garlic, quickly make crisp, flavorful croutons perfect for salads, soups, or snacking.
This Parmesan crouton recipe takes humble day-old bread cubes and turns them into cheesy flavor powerhouses. If you are like me, you often have some leftover bread. And if you are even more like me, you hate to let anything go to waste. Simply cube the bread (you can leave the crusts on!), toss with a few glugs of olive oil, sprinkle in some finely grated Parmesan, a bit of fresh garlic, plus salt and pepper. Then bake until the edges are golden, and the center still has a little chew.
I developed this recipe for an appearance on The Today Show, and they got rave reviews. These crisp, cheesy croutons will instantly upgrade salads, soups, or just get nibbled until they are gone. Once you’ve made and tried these, store-bought croutons don’t stand a chance. Put out a bowl of these with drinks, and everyone will think you are a genius.
Try sprinkling these atop a Caesar Salad or a Creamy Tomato Soup with Canned Tomatoes.
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What's In This Post?
Croutons from a box will never measure up again after you’ve made these Parmesan Croutons. Use on salads & soups!
Ingredients
- Cubed good white bread – This is the perfect use for your almost-stale bread. Try ciabatta, a country white, or even a sourdough.
- Extra-virgin olive oil – To coat the bread for cooking.
- Grated Parmesan – They wouldn’t be Parmesan croutons without the Parmesan.
- Fresh minced garlic
How to Make Homemade Parmesan Croutons
- Prepare the oven and croutons: Preheat the oven to 375°F and cut up the bread into pieces.
- Coat the croutons: Toss the bread cubes with the olive oil, Parmesan, garlic, and salt and pepper.
- Bake: Spread the croutons on the baking sheet, leaving some space between them. Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes, until browned and crisp. Remove them from the pan and cool.
Variations
- Make croutons in a skillet: You can also sauté these croutons in a skillet — just coat it with nonstick spray first. They get a lovely caramelized exterior that way, but it takes a more vigilant eye — they will take about 8 minutes, and you’ll need to stir occasionally.
- Try other cheeses in place of Parmesan, any kind of hard-grating cheese you like. I have also made them with grated semi-hard cheeses, like Gruyere. These are hard to mess up.
- Check out How to Make Croutons or How to Make Puff Pastry Croutons for different variations.
Storage
These will keep well in a sealed container for up to 2 days.
What to Serve Parmesan Croutons With
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Parmesan Croutons
Ingredients
- 4 cups cubed good white bread
- 3 tablespoons good extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan
- ½ teaspoon minced garlic
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 F. Spray a rimmed baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. In a large bowl, toss the bread cubes with the olive oil, Parmesan, garlic, and salt and pepper.
- Spread the croutons on the baking sheet, leaving some space between them. Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes, until the outside is lightly browned and crisp. The middle should still be a bit soft. Remove them from the pan and cool.
Notes
Tips
- Use good Parmesan for this, since there are so few ingredients that the quality of the bread, the cheese, and the olive oil are what are being showcased.
- Take the croutons out of the oven before they are totally dry, as they will harden up further as they cool, and it’s nice for them to be a bit chewy in the middle.
