Whether you like it served sweet or savory, French toast is the ultimate breakfast food for relaxed and slow-paced mornings. The warm smells of vanilla or cinnamon wafting through your kitchen are enough to make most mouths water. But, the signature golden crunch and perfectly tender inside might be the culprit for overestimating how much French toast you need. Leftovers are never a problem, but French toast is one of those foods that is best eaten fresh. Here's the solution: Turn your leftovers into crispy French toast croutons.

Turning French toast into croutons will make a great, sweet, and crunchy addition to your salads and other dishes while also bringing richer flavors to your plate than regular croutons. Once you've cubed your leftover French toast, you just need to bake it in the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until golden brown. Since these croutons will have the crispiest texture when served fresh, store your leftover French toast in the fridge after breakfast and only bake the slices into croutons when needed.

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If your French toast leftovers are on the saltier side, let these elevate your savory dishes. Your croutons can add flavor and texture to simple side salads, such as an arugula and mushroom salad. Consider adding your croutons to any creamier soups like tomato and basil, broccoli, or pumpkin soup. This will brighten up your soup's texture and give you a crunch with every spoonful. Whenever you're making roast chicken, turkey, or another meat that requires stuffing, sub in these croutons instead of regular bread cubes for a flavorful dinner upgrade. If you want to use your French toast croutons for next morning's breakfast, top your scrambled eggs, omelet, or eggs Benedict with some crunchy croutons.

If your French toast go-to is on the sweeter side and features ingredients like maple syrup, vanilla, and cinnamon, then add these croutons to sweeter dishes and desserts. French toast croutons on a fruit salad (try our strawberry spinach salad) would add a crunchy texture and perfectly complement the fruits' sweetness. For a sweet breakfast pairing, these croutons can also make a crunchy topping for your pancakes or waffles. When you're baking your next blueberry or apple muffins, try crushing these French toast croutons and sprinkling them right on top for a crispy and crumbly layer. Cut your French toast into thin sticks before these baking into croutons, and you'll have a crispy dipping dessert for your favorite caramel or chocolate sauce.