Croutons

When I have a loaf of bread that's been around a day too long I am thinking one of two things: breadcrumbs or croutons? Post thanksgiving I had half of my herb loaf left from stuffing and I thought bake or buy croutons would be a great challenge.  These are great on salads or soups, but I must admit that I do sometimes snack on them all by themselves...

The store brand: Rothbury Farms Croutons - Seasoned - Italian Style

My recipe:
Half loaf semi-stale bread
2 tbsp evoo
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 375.

Cube your bread up to whatever size croutons you prefer. Mine are fairly large - probably 1" cubes.

Put all the bread cubes in a ziplock bag and sprinkle the herbs cheese and evoo. Close up the bag and shake away! You can choose whatever combo of herbs you like.

Spread the cubes in a single layer on a baking sheet.

Bake at 375 for 20 mins or until bread is toasty, brown, and dry. Leave them open to air overnight before packaging up to ensure they are completely dry - nobody likes a soggy breadcrumb!

These were DELICIOUS.  Super crispy and the herbs were great - the parmesan cheese is definitely a winner.  I like my croutons a little larger and the little store cubes just can't stand up to these.  The store brand was also SALTY.  In just a few cubes, you get 4% your daily sodium intake.  Ouch.

Mine are on the left:

The cost?  Now, I usually use a loaf of stale bread that is about to go to waste, but I used the full store price for the bread here.  Store bought croutons are essentially really expensive stale bread.  To make your own costs less than half the store bought, and you get to use up some unappetizing bread.

	Size	Cost	Cost/Cup
Rothbury Farms - Italian Seasoned	6 oz (1.5 cups)	$      1.99	$           1.33
Homemade	3 cups	$      1.95	$           0.65

Bake or Buy?  BAKE!

Apple Cider

Another apple recipe!  I think after this, I will have contained my apple stock.  I've never even considered making my own cider, so this should be exciting.

The most exciting part was when I started looking around at methods, I discovered you don't need to peel or core the apples!  Just quarter them up and toss in a pot - easy peasy!

The Store Brand: Harris Teeter Farmer's Market Apple Cider

My Recipe:

Ingredients:
8-10 apples (any color, any kind)
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
2 tbsp cinnamon
2 tbsp allspice
1/2 tsp nutmeg
12 cloves

Directions:

- Quarter all the apples and put them in a large pot.

- Add water until the apples are just covered.
- Add sugars and spices.

- Keep at a rolling boil for about an hour.

- Cover and cook at a low simmer for 2 hours.
- Mash up the apples with a potato masher.

- Let cool and put through a cheesecloth to strain out the solids.

And finally, mmmmm:

The final product looked just like apple cider!  The flavor was good - I think the spices were a little excessive.  Next time I would probably half the cinnamon and allspice.  Once it was chilled, it was really thick.  Probably could have added some more water to get a better consistency and tone down the spices.

Compared to the store brand, I had a hard time loving my homemade version.  The homemade batch did have a great flavor, but the thickness was definitely weirding me out.  I just like my drinks to be liquid.

What about the cost breakdown?  Most of the cost in the homemade was the apples ($4.95).  The homemade version cost almost twice as much as the store bought.  $5.50 for a half gallon of cider seems pretty steep for me.  Combine that with the 3 hours of simmering and phew, I'm not sure about this effort.

	Size	Cost	Cost/Oz
Harris Teeter Farmers Market Apple Cider	64 fl oz	$      3.49	$           0.05
Homemade	64 fl oz	$      5.53	$           0.09

Even though it was a great way to use up some expiring apples, I'd have to say:

Bake or Buy?  BUY!

Cranberry Sauce

This is like the best day ever.  Here's why:
- It's my birthday.
- I got an Ipad.
- I had a guest post put up on Macheesmo! (same post as below - http://www.macheesmo.com/2011/11/guest-post-bake-or-buy-cranberry-sauce/#comments)
- I am going to get the bestest creme brulee tonight.

So anyways... onto the subject at hand:
I know... I'm just asking to make some enemies with this one.  There is a clear line between who likes their sauce from a can (still in the shape of it even) or chunky and fresh.

The store brand: Ocean Spray - I bought both Jellied and Whole Berry

My recipe:
1 bag cranberries (12 ounce)
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/6 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup orange juice
pinch cinnamon

It's pretty easy - put it all in a pan and let it cook down over medium heat for about 15 minutes.  I was using fresh oranges, but I realized my oranges didn't have quite enough juice, so I ended up using half store bought juice.

And once it's all said and done (mine's on the right):

And if you have to have the can shape:

Interestingly enough, the whole berry and jellied cranberry sauce had the exact same ingredients - cranberries, high fructose corn syrup, and corn syrup.  One is just emulified and one's not.  So I win nutrition right there.

My cranberry sauce actually jelled up a lot more than I thought it would when it cooled - it was really thick and delicious (I bet you could even use a hand blender and shape it like a can if you had to).  The canned jellied version is totally out - I knew that was true for me, I need the chunk. 

Head-to-head on the whole berry version?  Homemade crushes the taste category.  It's fresh and tart, and that hint of citrus makes it.  Period.  The canned was oversweetened, so you didn't even get a good feel for the tartness of the cranberries.

And the cost?  Well it actually costs more to make your own.  But aside from Thanksgiving, how often do you have cranberry sauce?  Treat your guests for the holiday!

	Size	Cost	Cost/Oz
Ocean Spray Cranberry Sauce	14 oz	$      1.99	$           0.14
Homemade	16 oz	$      3.15	$           0.20

So, Bake or Buy?  BAKE!

On a side note, what did I do with all that cranberry sauce?  I'm still trying to get rid of an influx of apples, so I made cran-apple crisp.  Mix a batch of that fresh cranberry sauce with 4 sliced apples and top with your favorite crisp topping!

My recipe:

1/2 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 stick butter (cubed)

Fork the crisp ingredients together and spread over the top of the apple/cranberry mixture.  Bake at 375 for 45 minutes.  Eat warm!  Wish I would have shot a picture of this - it's just GORGEOUS! :)