There is a restaurant near me that’s part gastro pub, part pizza joint, and it makes fantastic pizzas. One of their wood-fired pies is topped with Fontina, Parmesan, garlic oil, and arugula, and it’s very delicious. My friends and I call it the salad pizza because there’s an entire salad’s worth of wonderful peppery arugula on top of it.
Piling greens on top of a pizza is not that unusual. But adding pizza to a salad? Now, that’s a bit unorthodox. Yet, one of my favorite culinary creators, Melissa Ben-Ishay of @bakedbymelissa, found a genius way to do it that makes so much sense, I can’t believe I hadn’t thought of it before. Once you see it, we’re certain you’ll feel the same way too.
How to Turn Leftover Pizza into Croutons
This is seriously one of those aha moments when you wonder if you have the chops in the kitchen that you think you have. Ben-Ishay took leftover pizza slices and cut them, with scissors, into crouton-size cubes. Then she air-fried them at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 10 minutes to transform them into actual croutons—crispy, cheesy, tomato-y croutons.
Ben-Ishay then tops a very green salad—any dressed salad will do—with chives, olives, a generous sprinkling of Parmesan cheese, and the croutons, resulting in a super easy, delicious, and filling meal in all but 10 minutes.
“Well this is the best idea ever,” one of Ben-Ishay’s Instagram followers said. Another went straight for the high praise with, “Monuments should be erected in your honor.”
News editor Bailey Fink, who has in the past added a lightly dressed salad to the top of pizza to get in some extra greens, says she’s “never going back” after seeing Ben-Ishay’s trick.
“The pizza ‘croutons’ are incredibly crispy but have such a better flavor than traditional croutons— especially if you get your pie topped with things like pepperoni, banana peppers, and sausage,” says Fink.
“It’s a great way to add more flavor to your salad, and it doesn’t feel like you’re eating a boring ‘ole salad for lunch. Plus, it doesn’t take any longer to make than just reheating a slice of pizza would, since you just cut up your veggies while the pizza ‘croutons’ are getting crispy in the air fryer. I have eaten it for three days in a row—and I’m already thinking about making it for lunch again today!”
Yeah, I’m calling it. It is the best idea ever—at least for this week!
