I came across these ideas and thought "Hallelujah!" I hate throwing away things, but according to the article I found, Americans throw away 14% of their food. There's gotta be a way to use and "recycle" what we're not using.

There's always the compost pile, especially for the gardeners who are beginning their planting, but even then, you feel guilty. I feel fine throwing a banana peel and some egg shells (which are super helpful for a garden especially as they fights off slugs), but throwing away wholesome food that's just gone bad makes you want to shed a tear.

So, if you have a loaf of bread that's gone stale. Don't panic. All is well. Instead of making a sandwich with it, just make something else. There are other things to do with it.

Here are 11 such things (found at the website listed at the bottom of the article):

The recipes listed come from links from the same website. I took the liberty of providing the recipe instead of just the link so you have one step less to do before adding to your Cook'n library.

1. Bread Crumbs
Put bread in a processor until you have crumbs. Use immediately or freeze. Beats buying it at the store!

2. Croutons
I had homemade croutons for the first time only about a month ago. They are so good. I sometimes feel that the store-bought can be super crunchy. You have more leeway if you're preparing them from home.

Homemade Croutons

Ingredients:
Day-old homemade bread (or garlic bread, but if using this, don't add seasonings)
butter, softened
garlic salt
parsley
onion powder, optional


Directions:

Mix butter and seasonings. Spread onto bread. Carefully slice bread into cubes. Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake at 200 degrees for one hour or until completely dried.

Recipe formatted with the Cook'n Recipe Software from DVO Enterprises.

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3. Bread Pudding
There are tons of good recipes out there. I love the raspberry bread pudding (You can find the recipe in November 23rd 's weekly newsletter)

4. Stuffing
Stuffing isn't my thing, but if it's yours, why wait until Thanksgiving. Make it now! (Or just make it when you have a stale loaf so you don't have to let it go stale on purpose. That can be no fun.)

5. French Toast
Dry bread will soak up the liquid faster. Use eggnog for an exceptionally delicious breakfast or add 1 tsp. vanilla to the egg mixture.

6. Garlic Bread
Use butter or margarine and it will moisten the area you want moistened. Garlic bread is crispy anyway so using stale bread won't matter so much. I like to add a mac n' cheese packet on top of the bread (already slathered in garlic butter). It is a perfect addition to almost any meal and you get that pretty orange color, too.

7. Casserole/Pasta Topping
Pretty much the same idea as the crouton, but instead of crunching up your salad, your adding that variety of texture to your main dish. Chop bread then saute in butter and your choice of seasonings. Sprinkle on top (and add some cheese if you want), then broil. Watch carefully, but it should take 5 to 10 minutes. You could add it to a soup, too!

8. Breaded Soups
Bread soup, interesting.

Italian Ribollita (Vegetable and Bread Soup)

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large red onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
4 potatoes, diced
10 (5 inch) zucchini, diced
1 leek, sliced
1 quart hot water
1 bunch swiss chard, chopped
1 head savory cabbage, quartered, cored and shredded
1 bunch kale, shredded
2 (15.6-ounce) cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
salt and ground black pepper to taste
3 tablespoons tomato puree
8 slices day old bread


Directions:

1 Place the olive oil in a deep pan and heat over medium-high heat. Stir in the onion, and cook until transparent, about 5 minutes. Mix in the carrots, celery, potatoes, zucchini, and leek. Stir and cook 5 minutes more. Pour in the hot water to cover the vegetables. Stir in the Swiss chard, Savoy cabbage, and kale. Cover, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 1 hour.
2 Place 1 can of beans in a blender or food processor bowl. Blend until smooth. Stir pureed beans into the vegetable mixture along with the second can of beans. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low, and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the tomato puree.
3 Prepare the soup by layering slices of bread with the vegetable mixture in a casserole or soup dish. Cover, and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, or overnight.
4 To serve the soup, place in a pot, and reheat over medium heat. Serve hot.

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9. Open-Faced Sandwiches (I'll call them pizzas)
Top with whatever you want: veggies, meats, cheeses, sauces. Lightly broil in oven or on the top rack of a BBQ! Invite people over to enjoy. You'll be able to have a BBQ with variety!

10. Bread Salad
This idea looks unique and yummy. It's not quite the same idea as a crouton, but it makes for a heartier salad.

Panzanella Bread Salad

Ingredients:
4 cups tomatoes, cut into large chunks
4 cups day old (somewhat dry and hard) crusty bread (Italian or French loaf), cut into chunks the same size as the tomatoes*
1 cucumber, skinned and seeded, cut into large chunks
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 bunch fresh basil, torn into little pieces
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup good olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste


Directions:

Note: As you cut the tomatoes, remove some of the seeds and liquid. Your panzanella will be juicy enough. Leave the crusts on the bread chunks; they will stay chewier and give the panzanella more substance.

*If you don't have hard old bread sitting around, you can take fresh crusty bread, cut it into big cubes, lay the cubes out on a baking sheet, and put in a 300 degrees F oven for 5-10 minutes, until the outer edges have dried out a bit (not toasted, just dried). If you use fresh bread without doing this, the bread may disintegrate into mush in the salad.

Method
Mix everything together and let marinate, covered, at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, up to 12 hours. Do not refrigerate or you will destroy the texture of the tomatoes.
Serve at room temperature.

Recipe formatted with the Cook'n Recipe Software from DVO Enterprises.

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11. Refresh!
This is for those of you who just want that bread back to it's old self again. This won't work with bread that's gone too hard, so use that for the croutons. All you're going to need is a paper bag. I think the things we can do with food are amazing.

Instructions from eHow.com:

1. Preheat oven to 325° F (165°C).
2. Place the stale bread in a clean paper bag. Fold or twist the bag's opening to close.
3. Dampen the bag lightly and evenly with cold water. The surface of the bread may become a little wet, but avoid soaking the bread's interior.
4. Heat the entire bag in the oven until the bread is softened and warmed through. Sprinkle with more water if the bag dries before the bread is ready. Allow about 5 minutes for rolls or slices and at least 20 minutes for large loaves.
5. Be sure to remove the bag from the oven before it scorches or before you increase the temperature.

References:
https://www.keeperofthehome.org/2011/11/11-ways-to-use-stale-bread.html
https://www.ehow.com/how_114477_refresh-stale-bread.html

Bread Crumbs image:
https://whatscookingamerica.net/Bread/BreadPhotos/BreadCrumbs1.jpg

Croutons image:
https://asweetpeachef.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/homemade-croutons2.png

Bread pudding image:
https://www.rhodesbread.com/images/recipes/RaspberryBreadPuddingLarge.jpg

Stuffing image:
https://3.bp.blogspot.com/_BKVgANI8giQ/Svi4WQLPUhI/AAAAAAAAAmQ/EL6DEl2aN2g/s400/Chef+Chuck%27s+Focaccia+Stuffing02.JPG

French Toast image:
https://hostedmedia.reimanpub.com/TOH/Images/Photos/37/expsi5388_W101973175D11_05_1b.jpg

Garlic Bread image:
https://www.dvo.com/newsletter/weekly/2012/11-09-800/w_images/bread.jpg

Casserole/pasta/ soup topping image:
https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5VzWAUkUugI/UOXiOgYJ8VI/AAAAAAAAEFw/ucs6geztcZk/s1600/Pasticciata.jpg

Italian Bread Soup image:
https://images.media-allrecipes.com/userphotos/250x250/00/05/71/57171.jpg

Open-faced Sandwiches image:
https://hostedmedia.reimanpub.com/TOH/Images/Photos/37/exps41491_CW1444963D34C.jpg

Bread Salad image:
https://www.simplyrecipes.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/panzanella.jpg?ea6e46

Refresh image:
https://i01.i.aliimg.com/img/pb/358/737/284/284737358_044.jpg