A loaf of fresh, crusty bread is so good when you bring it home from the store. But unlike processed bread, fresh breads go stale very quickly, usually by the very next day! One way to salvage that stale loaf of bread is to turn it into cheese-topped pieces of toast to have with soup or just to snack on.

The ingredients for making these “cheesy toasts” are:

• Crusty bread
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• Grated cheese

The amounts will vary according to how much bread you have.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. This will take about 10 minutes. While the oven is heating, slice the bread into about ¼ inch thick slices.

Spread the sliced bread out on a baking sheet with sides. Lightly brush the bread with olive oil. You only need to brush one side of the slice of bread.

Sprinkle each slice with some salt and a grind or two of pepper. This is when you could also add a tiny sprinkle of dried oregano if you want.

Shred some fresh cheese, preferably parmesan but actually any hard cheese should work.

You only need a very small amount of cheese on each round of bread.

My Husband likes these really crunchy so I bake them for about 15 minutes. If you like them chewier, take them out of the oven after about 10 minutes.

There are lots of variations you can play with. My favorite Steak House makes these cheesy toasts with big round thin slices made from bread called a “boule” (which is French for ball.) They use all sorts of spices like garlic and oregano as well. Don’t be afraid to experiment!

Enjoy!

P.S. Use these in French Onion Soup!

Cheesy Toasts Ingredients:

Inspiration: Barefoot Contessa

• 1 loaf of Crusty Bread
• ¼ cup Olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• ¾ cup Grated cheese (Parmesan)

You can view and print this recipe here.

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