I’ve been making my own homemade croutons recently (and not just because I ran out of store-bought ones!). They are super easy, delicious, and you can custom-make them to your own personal taste. The best part is that you can use quality ingredients of your choice and avoid any preservatives (for example, the dangerous BHT) that you would find in store-bought croutons.
The Fannie Farmer Cookbook by Marion Cunningham is the source of this homemade baked crouton recipe and you only need two ingredients: bread and butter. I used fermented multi-grain bread from the local Little Rooster Bread Company and Organic Valley butter.
All you have to do is butter both sides of the bread (removing crusts if desired), and then cut the slices into small squares. Then bake at 350 degrees (turning as necessary a few times) until the croutons are lightly browned. This took only about 10 minutes in my toaster oven.
To make herb croutons, before slicing the bread, I sprinkled it with parsley, basil, thyme, bay leaves, and rosemary. You can use any herbs you like and adust the taste accordingly. If you would like to add a garlic taste to the croutons, simply add pressed garlic to the butter before spreading it on the bread.