Tomato And Garlic Crouton Salad Recipes

FRESH TOMATO AND CUCUMBER SALAD WITH BUTTERY GARLIC CROUTONS

Steps:

• Melt 2 tablespoons Country Crock® Spread in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add bread cubes and cook, tossing frequently, until light golden, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle with garlic and cook over low heat, tossing, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Remove and set aside.
• Melt remaining 2 tablespoons Spread in same skillet over medium-high heat and cook onions, stirring occasionally, until light golden and crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Remove and set aside.
• Put toasted bread cubes, onions, tomatoes, and cucumbers in large bowl; toss. Drizzle with vinegar and sprinkle with basil and toss.

CRISPY CROUTON SALAD

Steps:

• Place bread cubes in a single layer in an ungreased 15x10x1-in. baking pan. Bake at 450° for 6-8 minutes or until golden brown, stirring twice. Cool., In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, mozzarella, yellow pepper and basil. In a small bowl, whisk the oil, vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper. Pour over salad and toss to coat. Sprinkle with croutons.

TOMATO AND GARLIC CROUTON SALAD

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• In a small skillet over medium-low heat, add 3 tablespoons olive oil, the butter, garlic, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper, to taste. Cook to infuse the butter and oil with the garlic, about 4 minutes.
• Add the cubed bread to a large bowl, pour the butter and garlic mixture over the bread and toss to coat. Transfer to a sheet tray and bake until crisp, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.
• In a small bowl whisk together the remaining olive oil and red wine vinegar and set aside.
• In a large serving bowl, combine the tomatoes, olives, mozzarella, croutons, basil, and the oil and vinegar mixture. Gently toss to coat all the tomatoes and croutons. Let the salad sit for 10 minutes before serving.

SPINACH SALAD ON GARLIC CROUTONS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Put the eggs in a pan, cover with water and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cover the pan, turn off the heat and let stand 10 minutes. Run the eggs under cold water, crack and return to cold water for a few minutes to loosen shells. Chop the eggs and set aside.
• Arrange the bread on a baking sheet and toast in the oven until golden, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove baking sheet from the oven and rub with the garlic. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with the cheese, then return to the oven to melt the cheese, about 1 to 2 minutes.
• While bread toasts, heat a skillet over medium-high heat with 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, a couple of turns of the pan. Add the pancetta and crisp for about 3 minutes. Stir in the mushrooms and cook until tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and deglaze the pan with Marsala or dry sherry.
• While mushrooms cook, combine spinach with red onions and dress with juice of 1 lemon, a liberal drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and nutmeg.
• Arrange the toasts on a platter and top with the mushrooms and spinach. Garnish with chopped eggs and serve.

TOMATO GARLIC BREAD

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Split the bread in half lengthwise and place it on a baking sheet. Drizzle the cut side with the olive oil. Bake until golden brown and toasted, 5 to 8 minutes.
• While still warm, rub the cut side of the bread halves with the garlic. Cut the tomato in half and rub it on the bread halves.
• Sprinkle with course salt, then cut into 4 pieces.

CHILLED SHRIMP AND CHOPPED-TOMATO SALAD WITH CRISP GARLIC CROUTONS

Steps:

• Prepare an ice bath; set aside. In a 5-quart stockpot, combine the water with 2 tablespoons salt, peppercorns, paprika, bay leaves, and lemon juice; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium; simmer 5 minutes. Add shrimp; stir once. Cook until shrimp are pink and opaque, about 1 1/2 minutes. With a large sieve, transfer shrimp to ice bath. Chill thoroughly, at least 2 minutes, and drain in sieve. Cut each shrimp in half crosswise. Place in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to use.
• In a food processor fitted with the metal blade, chop garlic. Remove 2 teaspoons; set aside. Quarter 1 red pepper and 1 tomato; add to remaining garlic in processor. Pulse until a coarse puree forms. Pour into a large mixing bowl.
• Cut remaining red pepper and 3 tomatoes into 1/4-inch dice, and add to bowl along with cucumber, green pepper, red onion, marjoram, vinegar, and 1/4 cup olive oil; stir to combine.
• Meanwhile, in a large saute pan, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat, and fry half the bread cubes until they just begin to turn crisp and golden brown, about 3 minutes. Add half the reserved chopped garlic and a pinch of salt; cook, stirring frequently, until garlic is fragrant and bread cubes are golden brown, about 1 minute more. Transfer to a large plate, and repeat process with remaining garlic and bread cubes. Just before serving, toss the shrimp and half the croutons into salad mixture, season with salt and pepper, and drizzle with more olive oil, if desired. Serve remaining croutons on the side or on top of each portion.

CUCUMBER-TOMATO SALAD WITH SEARED HALLOUMI AND OLIVE OIL CROUTONS

Steps:

• Make the croutons: Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut each slice of bread into 1-inch-wide strips. Tear each strip into 1-inch pieces, removing the crust as you go if it is very thick. Transfer to a large baking sheet (or use 2 sheets, if necessary to prevent crowding). Drizzle with olive oil and toss until evenly coated.
• Bake until golden brown and crunchy on the outside, 18 to 22 minutes, rotating the baking sheet and turning the croutons halfway through so they brown evenly, and checking them every few minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning with a light sprinkling of salt, if needed. Let cool on the baking sheet.
• Make the salad: In a colander in the sink, toss the cucumbers with about 1/2 teaspoon salt. Place a bag of ice cubes or an ice pack on top to chill and firm the cucumbers. Let drain while you prepare the other ingredients.
• In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes with about 1/2 teaspoon salt. Toss and set aside while you prepare the other ingredients.
• Slice the halloumi about 1/4-inch thick, then cut into bite-size strips. Smash and peel the garlic cloves and combine with 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil in a small bowl to steep.
• Pour off excess liquid from the bowl holding the tomatoes. Add drained cucumbers, red onion or scallions, fresh herbs and 2 tablespoons vinegar to tomatoes and toss well. Remove and discard the garlic cloves from the extra-virgin olive oil, add the oil to tomatoes and mix well. (If desired, the salad can be made up until this point and refrigerated for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Drain off excess liquid in the bottom of the bowl before proceeding.)
• When ready to serve, add about half the croutons to the salad and toss so they can absorb the liquid. Taste and adjust the seasonings with salt, pepper, extra-virgin olive oil and vinegar.
• Cook the halloumi: Line a plate with paper towels and lightly coat a nonstick skillet with extra-virgin olive oil. Heat oil over medium-high until rippling. Working in batches, cook the halloumi strips on both sides until golden-brown and crusty, about 1 minute per side. Remove to the plate to drain.
• Taste and add more croutons to salad as desired. (If there are too many, the salad will be starchy; too few, and it will be wet.) At the last minute, toss in the halloumi, add another good glug of extra-virgin olive oil, mix gently and serve immediately. (If desired, transfer to a clean bowl or platter for serving.)