Q. What can I do with lots of old challah, aside from the usual French toast or breadcrumbs?
While French toast or breadcrumbs and croutons may seem overdone, consider making creative versions of these typical bread-centered dishes.
Instead of simply pan-fried challah french toast and topping with butter and syrup, try overnight French toast otherwise knowns as bread pudding, it is a simple, make-ahead casserole that can be easily prepared for a small family breakfast or doubled for a large brunch.
smores challah french toastFor a creative rendition, try French Toast a la Crème Brulee where melted butter, brown sugar and corn syrup is spread in a 9 X 13 pan, covered with slices of challah, on top of which a mixture of eggs and milk is poured. After soaking in the fridge, the casserole is baked in the morning; and once plated, the overturned challah slices are deliciously caramelized (and addictive!).
Rum Raisin Bread PuddingTry one of these 9 french toast recipes to use up leftover challah.
For something savory…
Challah Strata MuffinsScroll to continue
More Love
Sukkot Menus Filled With Stuffing
It is a custom to eat stuffed foods on Sukkot, but we also need foods that are easy to …
7 Tips for Prep Ahead Shabbat Meals/Recipes
Dear Jamie, I was hoping that you might want to focus on Shabbat meals – …
Instead of breadcrumbs, consider making homemade croutons, which can be easily used to enhance a soup or salad.
To make croutons, dice leftover challah into small cubes, transfer to a large bowl, drizzle with olive oil or generously coat with non-stick cooking spray, and sprinkle with Za’atar or whatever spice blend you have on hand. Bake in a 300 degree F oven, tossing every 20 minutes, until golden and dried. Feel free to bake the croutons at a higher temperature, just make sure to monitor them more frequently so they don’t burn.
I love using leftover challah in stuffing. I throw any leftover challah in the freezer until I have enough to make a great stuffing, like any of these delicious Challah Stuffing Recipes and then there is challah kugel.
Here’s a savory version of challah kugel from my first cookbook, “Quick and Kosher: Recipes from the Bride Who Knew Nothing” (Feldheim).
Of course, you can’t go wrong simply freezing sliced leftover challah. When stored in slices, making sandwiches which call for hearty bread, such as the S’mores Challah Panini (pictured at the top), turkey sandwiches or tuna melts, becomes an easy task.
Apple Challah StuffingIf you’re looking for an in-depth explanation about challah with history, blessings, recipes and more, download our free ebook with everything you ever wanted to know about challah, our best recipe for the dough and tons of variations and more ways to use leftovers.
WHAT WHAT WHAT?!?!??! This is GENIUS!!! Thanks so so so much for sharing! Your blog looks great! So happy to discover it!
Hi Jamie, We’ve used leftover sliced challah to make pie crusts! Sprinkle with water and flatten with your fingers and press into a pie pan. Brush with a beaten egg. You can do the same thing with muffin tins. You can see a free recipe and picture in “Outside the Bread Box: What to do with leftover bread” on our Tuesday Blog’s (use pull down menu) at http://www.everydayhappyfoods.com. Enjoy! None of our guests even knew the crust was from leftover bread! Lisa Rovick and Susan Weintrob
fivel l
I love it! I usually make pastrami stuffed chicken (cutlet) rolls but I think I will try stuffing the cutlets with stuffing for a change 🙂
I started making croutons with the leftover challah. I toast them in the oven (hamotzi) and they taste delicous! Just this week, I ran out of bread crumbs so I took some croutons and grinded them…it was perfect!
There are a slew of “bread puddings ” that can be made- apple, French coffee- with cherries, chocolate and nuts-etc. Depending on thetaste of the “leftover:” challah, use it for the basis of a stuffing or dressing- After breaking it into small pieces and wtting it, add diced onion, celery, fried onion and garlic, chopped chestnuts, and egg- salt and peper to taste and back, either in a pan, or inside a bird, or rolled into flattened chicken breasts, veal cutlets , etc. In my home, we use Brooklyn’s best ( e 12th street) Challah for corned beef sandwiches- much better than rye!
Great thinking David! Do you have a recipe you can post? I also have a great recipe for a Rum Raisin Bread Pudding in my new book Quick & Kosher Meals in Minutes AND the most delicious Individual Baked Challah French Toast (baked and served in ramekins) in the Shavuos Issue of Joy of Kosher with Jamie Geller.
What about Bread and Butter Pudding?
A true classic!
Healthy, natural and with very few calories…