Who doesn’t love homemade croutons? They’re wonderfully golden and crisp, and infinitely superior to dry, store-bought croutons.

The best part about homemade croutons is that you can use your favorite bread, even if it’s gone stale, and your croutons are ready in under 15 minutes.

Most salads benefit from a crisp, crunchy element, which could be anything from toasted nuts, tortilla strips, ice water-soaked red onion, or of course, the classic crouton.

I’ve been perfecting my homemade Caesar salad recipe, so I thought we’d start with the croutons. Off we go!

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Let’s hear it for French toast! The best French toast is seared golden on the outside, tender in the middle, lightly sweet and deliciously custard-y. This French toast recipe meets all of those qualifications with flying colors.

This recipe bypasses all of the common French toast downfalls. Perhaps your previous attempts have yielded soggy, falling apart, eggy toast—never again! I’ve studied French toast techniques and this recipe will not let you down.

French toast, known as pain perdu in France, is one of many brilliant uses for stale bread. It’s true that French toast turns out best when made with stale bread. However, you can absolutely make French toast if your bread is still fresh. The trick is to quickly dehydrate sliced bread in the oven so your French bread doesn’t turn out too soggy—I’ll walk you through this step below.

This French toast is perfect for a special brunch at home. Make some for Mom tomorrow? (Here are more Mother’s Day recipes.) The recipe is simple enough to make on a regular weekend as well. Let’s make some!

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Who doesn’t love golden, crisp crostini? Crostini is crusty bread brushed with olive oil, toasted in the oven or in the grill to perfection. I love how it shatters between my teeth, offering the perfect contrast to a creamy spread or dip.

The word crostini means “little crusts” in Italian. I typically associate crostini with party appetizers and cheese plates, but you don’t have to throw a party to enjoy these little toasts.

For example, you can resuscitate a stale baguette by turning it into crostini. You can whip together a fun lunch or snack in no time with crostini and condiments from your fridge. Or you can make an everyday dinner more festive by starting with a round of crostini and a creamy spread. Crostini is the answer!

I recently baked up some crostini to accompany my caponata recipe. As I consulted my bruschetta recipe for guidance, I realized that I must not be the only person wondering how to make crostini. So here I am, waxing poetic about Italian toasts. Did you know that the singular form of crostini is crostino?

Today, I’m sharing all my best crostini topping suggestions and a simple, foolproof recipe for homemade crostini. Do tell me how you enjoy your crostini in the comments!

Watch How to Make Crostini

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My grandma Virginia makes the best garlic bread. It’s soft and buttery in the middle, irresistibly garlicky, and we all love it. Amongst a family of picky kids, the garlic bread was always a winner.

This garlic bread recipe brings back warm memories, although it’s quite a bit different. This bread is crisp and crusty with deep roasted garlic flavor. Since roasted garlic is inherently buttery in flavor and texture, I was able to cut the amount of butter in half.

I’ve had this recipe in my back pocket since sharing my tutorial on how to roast garlic. I second-guessed publishing it, since this recipe takes longer to make than your average garlic bread. On the other hand, it’s a simple, comforting side dish that goes well with many homemade meals.

If you’re making some saucy pasta tonight, how about a side of garlic bread? I’m working hard on a pantry resource guide for you and will be back soon.

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It’s peak tomato season, which means it’s also bruschetta season! By bruschetta, I mean the Americanized version of authentic Italian bruschetta, featuring ripe red tomatoes, basil and garlic on golden, toasted French bread.

That’s the only way I’ve known bruschetta to be. I like to finish my bruschetta with a light drizzle of thick balsamic vinegar or balsamic glaze, for bonus points in both flavor and beauty. It punctuates the end result with irresistible tanginess.

Bruschetta is the perfect appetizer for summer parties. In fact, I only make bruschetta during the summertime, since ripe tomatoes are the number one key to making great bruschetta.

At its best, bruschetta is light and crisp, covered in deep red tomatoes and full of fresh flavor. At its worst, bruschetta is soggy, pink and flavorless.

Let’s boycott sad bruschetta! I’m sharing all my tips in this post. Ready to make the best bruschetta you’ve ever had?

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We’re going back to basics this summer, so let’s talk about avocado toast! Creamy avocado spread onto well-toasted bread is one of my favorite quick meals. Actually, it’s one of my favorite meals in general. It’s so delicious, I’d call it one of life’s simplest pleasures.

As usual, I have strong opinions on what makes the best avocado toast. So today, I thought I’d share my basic recipe, with my best tips and favorite variations.

If you are a stranger to avocado toast, you’ve been missing out and we must remedy this situation immediately.

If you’re well-familiar with the joy of avocado toast, I hope you find some helpful tips and some fun new ways to change up your toast. Onward!

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I have a couple of friends who don’t love brunch. Blasphemy, right?! I love a late, long, lazy brunch when time allows. Ninety-nine percent of the time, I’ll opt for a savory option.

There’s so much room for creativity with standard vegetarian breakfast ingredients: eggs, toast, veggies, tortillas, beans, etc. The possibilities are endless, and I have a few favorite local restaurants that offer creative veggie options.

I’ve been thinking about the standard egg-and-toast brunch option and came up with my own version that is neither bland nor boring. I whipped up an avocado-based pesto in my food processor. It’s infinitely more exciting than a pat of butter (sorry, butter!).

Toast can only be as awesome as the bread used to make it, so use a good one! I love whole-grain toast for its hearty texture and extra flavor.

This simple variation on classic avocado toast is delicious on its own, or you can top it with eggs and a handful of sliced cherry tomatoes, as shown here. Either way, it’s a great snack, breakfast or brunch, lunch or dinner.

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I like to consider myself a spontaneous person, but when Ali texted me about riding roller coasters on Sunday afternoon, I balked. I hid from her text underneath a blanket on the couch for a solid ten minutes. Then I mustered up the strength to reply that roller coasters scare me to death, so probably not. Seriously, people die on roller coasters. They’re terrifying.

Then she said no one else could go. I started to feel bad. Whatever happened to being spontaneous? I looked up the park’s safety record, which was pretty solid except for the one rickety wooden roller coaster. She challenged me to face my fears. I asked how much the amusement park costs. All of this was just a downward slide toward a reluctant yes.

As I was getting ready, I seriously considered calling my mom to say my final goodbye. I almost asked my friend Matt to be Cookie’s godfather. I lamented not growing old and gray with my brothers. I’m a goner. Then I remembered that brother no. 1 survived sky diving. The odds were in our favor, as long as we avoided that wooden death trap. Quit being a sissy, self.

Long story short, we rode some roller coasters, and lived to tell. Can’t particularly say I enjoyed the thrill or that my fear of roller coasters is gone, but we did it. I don’t care if I never ride one again. After our nausea subsided, we left the amusement park for margaritas and queso on a rooftop patio. I’d do that part again in a heartbeat.

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I feel good this morning. I haven’t felt so hot for the past few days, so I noticed. I’m not sure what it was, but I’m on the mend. I’ve been throwing together one-serving meals that don’t leave a family-sized mess to clean up. It’s been a good reminder that simple, quick and wholesome recipes are always much needed and appreciated.

This eggs-on-toast recipe is just that. It’s super simple and ready in ten minutes. You can prepare your eggs however you’d like—scrambled, fried, even poached.

Toast your bread and slather on a healthy amount of goat cheese (or smashed avocado, ricotta, hummus). Prepare some vegetables to provide a fresh component (I used peas for a spring version, but can’t wait to try sliced heirloom tomatoes this summer).

Top with egg, salt and pepper, and a sprinkling of fresh herbs. I opted for dill because I really love dill, but any leafy herb will do, like basil, parsley, mint, cilantro or chives. And you’re done!

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This weekend, Cookie and I hitched a ride down to Tulsa for Friendsgiving. Four hours later, we stretched our limbs outside the car as our dear old friends came outside to greet us. Hugs all around. The rest of the day was one long, happy blur full of good food and good company.

As always, Michael cooked the turkey. Emily made a giant green salad. Jordan’s pecan pie survived a trunk mishap. I brought the cranberry cornbread and eagerly stole little bits of crispy onions off the green bean casserole as I stood in line (sorry, Jes).

Nate brought homemade cranberry sauce, which was leaps and bounds better than the gelatinous, ridged glob of canned cranberry sauce that I remembered from college Friendsgivings. Those were the days when Pabst Blue Ribbon tall boys littered the table. This year, I still didn’t eat the turkey, but I went back for seconds of the cranberry sauce. Bright and bursting with sweet-tart cranberry flavor, it made a great jelly for my roll and livened up the mashed sweet potatoes.

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