Using old bread to make croutons isn’t rocket science. But sometimes the most obvious things get forgotten. The crunchy bite of croutons offers substance and texture to salads. They are also an easy way to use up old bread, a possible explanation for the enduring appeal of the Caesar Salad to restauranteurs. As bread is a great carrier of flavour, croutons also offer ways of injecting additional spicy or herby dimensions to a salad. 

The bread should a little dry and past its prime but not so hard that it’s resistant to a knife and shatters (and results in a trip to A&E). You can use pretty much any bread, although thin sliced will give you a less chunky crouton. By ripping the bread you’ll get more crispy raggedy edges to crisp in oil, an important lesson from the best roast potatoes. Add them to whichever salad you fancy.

Although I’ve used za’atar to flavour the croutons in the recipe below, it is by no means necessary. Try other spices like cumin or chilli, chopped herbs like rosemary or crushed garlic. They’d also be great with just a simple oil and salt coating. 

Squash, Sweetcorn and Onion Salad with Croutons

In this recipe, croutons add crispness to a warm salad featuring roast butternut squash, a vegetable that screams autumn like a broken boiler or (at least) a month of Halloween. It tastes – and looked – rather better than it appears in the photo!

This works as a substantial main course salad for two hungry people or will feed four as a small main or a side dish. The slightly charred onions offer a bitterness that balances out the sweetness of the squash and corn which is also offset by a tangy dressing. I first encountered this squash-onion partnership in an Ottolenghi salad recipe but I’ve departed considerably from his version here. Indeed, this is less of a recipe and more of a starting point. Substitute in the veg, spices or herbs you have or opt for an oil and vinegar dressing to veganize things.

Ingredients

• a medium butternut squash (approx. 800g)
• 1 large red onion
• 1 tbspn olive oil
• a corn on the cob (or 120g frozen sweetcorn*)
• 50g rocket

For the croutons:

• 80g stale bread (preferably a thick slice)
• 1 tbspn olive oil
• 2 tspn za’atar (or spices/herbs you have to hand)

For the dressing:

• 3 tbspn Greek yogurt
• 1 tbspn olive oil
• Squeeze of lemon

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220C/200C Fan.
2. Peel and seed the squash and then chop into approx. 2cm square pieces. Peel the red onion. Cut it into quarters from top to bottom and then cut each quarter into approx. 3 wedges. If the wedges fall apart, don’t worry.
3. Place the squash on one side of a baking tray and the onions on the other. Drizzle with the olive oil and add a good hit of salt and black pepper. Then toss each veg around in the oil and seasoning to coat them.
4. Put in the oven. After roughly 30 mins remove the onions (they should be soft, browned and a little bit frizzled but only lightly charred). Cook the squash for another 15 mins or until cooked and slightly charred. 
5. Meanwhile, you can get on with the rest of the prep. Carefully shave the corn kernels off the cob with a large knife. Heat a non-stick frying pan on high and then add the corn and cook for approx. 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until partly charred and toasted and starting to pop. Remove from the pan.
6. For the dressing: combine the yoghurt, oil and lemon. Season well with salt and pepper and give it a good stir.
7. For the croutons: mix together the oil and za’atar in a bowl. Chop or rip the bread into chunks, add to the oil-za’atar mix and squish around with your hands until the bread is well coated.
8. Once the squash is cooked, remove from the baking tray and reduce the oven temperature to 200C/180C fan. Spread out the bread on the baking sheet and roast for 10 minutes or so until golden brown and crispy.
9. Scatter the rocket, sweetcorn, onions and squash over your plates. Drizzle with the dressing and top with the croutons.

*If using frozen sweetcorn, allow to defrost for about 15 mins before toasting it in the pan.