Don't throw away stale French bread

Hints from Heloise
Published: Wednesday, May 7, 2008 12:17 a.m. MDT
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Dear Readers: Don't throw out that stale French bread! Most French bread, if not eaten the day it's baked, will be as hard as a rock the next day! But you can turn it into something wonderfully edible.

• Slice it, bake until it's brown and hard, then sprinkle with some yummy grated cheese and let the cheese melt for a few minutes in the oven. Float the crispy, cheesy bread on top of a bowl of soup, especially onion.

• Make croutons for salads, soups or snacks. Bake French-bread cubes in a 275-degree oven for 30 to 45 minutes or until golden brown and crunchy.

• For a quick breakfast or light supper, cut stale bread into cubes, mix with beaten eggs and saute in a small amount of butter or margarine, as you would French toast. Serve with syrup.

• Or just slice it and make French toast, and sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving. —Heloise

P.S. Don't forget our feathered friends! They would love a little day-old French bread.

Dear Heloise: I put citrus peels (orange and lemon) in a small, plastic, zippered bag and put them in my freezer. I use them to clean and deodorize my garbage disposal. Since they are frozen, they don't get moldy. Works great for a clean-smelling garbage disposal. —Patricia Conover, Grover Beach, Calif.

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Dear Heloise: When I make sandwiches for my family, especially if I am making a lot, I use a tablespoon to dip into the mayonnaise and spread it on the bread — it spreads much easier than a knife. I taught my children to do this, and now all their friends think it's cool. It works for mustard or any spread you are using. —Caroline, via e-mail

Caroline, I do the same and like to use an iced-tea spoon sometimes. It has a long handle, and it's perfect for dipping out just about anything from a container. —Heloise

Dear Readers: Test your Heloise Sandwich Hint IQ: Who supposedly invented sandwiches, and why? Well after some research, here is what we found: Legend states that the Fourth Earl of Sandwich, John Montague, was a gambler, and so that eating wouldn't take away from his game, it is thought that he developed the sandwich at some point in his lifetime, 1718 to 1792. So, how many sandwiches do you think are eaten every day in the U.S.? How about 300 million! —Heloise

Send a great hint to: Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, TX 78279-5000; fax: 210-435-6473; e-mail: Heloise@Heloise.com. © King Features Syndicate Inc.

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