Turn Leftover Pizza Into Crunchy Little Croutons Because, Why Not?

A fresh slice of great pizza is one of the culinary world's best experiences, but using up your leftover pizza is not. Sure, eating a slice cold out of the fridge the next day or popping it inside the oven to reheat is good, but it can be better. More creative. One of the most intriguing ways to follow that mandate is to turn your leftover pizza slices into croutons, like so many overcooked Bagel Bites.

It's worth a shot at least, considering how easy it is to turn that leftover slice into croutons. All you have to do is cut them up into little 1-inch squares, toss them gently in some oil, and pop them in a low-temp oven until they get a nice crispy crunch to them. You can also try frying them up in a pan on the stove, though the melting cheese might create a mess and make the pan difficult to clean.

Obviously, the first dish you think to use pizza croutons in is some kind of salad, though what kind of salad should be determined by what was on the pizza. A supreme pizza, for example, goes wonderfully in a Cobb salad since that dish is already loaded with toppings. Meanwhile, a chicken pizza made with white sauce goes perfectly in a chicken Caesar salad. Or, you can try pesto-based pizza croutons in herby pesto pasta salad for some much-needed crunch.

But salads aren't the only place you can use croutons, pizza or not. Soups are an excellent category to explore, for example, such as adding cheese pizza croutons to tomato soup as an alternative to grilled cheese. You can also crush those same croutons into little bits and use them as a crunchy, cheesy, tomato-rich topping to mac and cheese.

A final dish with immense potential you can use pizza croutons with is a classic stuffing, and not just for Thanksgiving. Imagine a veggie-lovers-based stuffing, for example, served with cranberry sauce and fried chicken.