Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Breadcrumbs

Toast 2 or 3 Vans plain waffles, break them apart and process them in food processor, pulsing on and off until they resemble classic breadcrumbs (not too fine).

I add in several dashes of dried Italian herb mix, or a simple combo of dried basil, parsley and marjoram. Drizzle in some high quality extra virgin olive oil as you pulse - just until they are moist and begin to stick together a bit.

* To make a classic pan-fried crumb topping, I pour a tablespoon or so of good olive oil in a medium hot skillet and toss in the processed waffle crumbs. I add dried Italian herbs to taste and stir, shake the pan and brown them for a minute, then add the crumbs to the recipe.

* To add these not-bread crumbs to recipes such as Karina's Maple-Apricot Glazed Meatloaf or Steve's yummy gluten-free Italian Meatballs, proceed as directed but leave out the olive oil. You can also use these dry crumbs in gluten-free burgers.