Cold pizza is a popular breakfast in my household: My husband and I often munch on leftover slices as we brew our morning coffee. I have no problem eating leftover pizza as-is. Still, I’m always looking for fun, creative ways to liven up leftovers—and when I saw my friend June Kim, the head of video at Bon Appétit, turn pizza into croutons for her salad, I decided I had to try it, too.

Kim, whose favorite way to enjoy her pizza croutons is in a salad with ranch dressing, tells me this trick works with any type of pizza. “However, I do feel that a grandma pie or Detroit-style pizza is best for this,” she says, as its thick base is focaccia-like and makes for particularly delicious croutons. She doesn’t toss the cut-up pizza in oil, since most pizzas already have enough oil to help them crisp up in the oven; instead, she toasts pizza pieces in a 350°F (175°C) oven until they’re nice and crisp, about seven minutes.

With Kim’s instructions in mind, I took two slices of leftover thin-crust margherita pizza, cut them into 1/2-inch pieces, spread them on a sheet pan, and popped them into the oven at 350°F (175°C), stirring every few minutes. I didn’t have any Detroit-style pizza on hand, but my thin-crust pizza pieces crisped up nicely, with a texture similar to pita chips. Out of curiosity, I tossed some pizza pieces in olive oil to see if it would make them even crispier. I also tried air-frying a batch to test whether the method was effective.

While the oiled pizza croutons were ever so slightly crispier, the regular ones were wonderfully crunchy, and there’s really no need for extra oil if all you want is a bit of texture for your salad. The air-fried croutons were just as crunchy as the oven-baked ones, and they were done in about half the time (three to four minutes, versus five to seven minutes in the oven).

I was thrilled to find that making pizza croutons is as easy—if not easier—than making regular ones. As long as you check and stir them occasionally to prevent burning, they’re remarkably hard to mess up.

Tossed into my homemade Caesar salad, the pizza croutons offered a satisfying crunch with bright hits of salty-sweet tomato sauce. I also loved them on their own as a snack—think of them as mini pizza crackers.

How to Make Pizza Croutons

• Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). If using air fryer, preheat air fryer to 350°F. 
• Using a pair of kitchen scissors or a sharp knife, cut your pizza into 1/2-inch pieces. Place on a 9-by-13-inch rimmed baking sheet and bake until crisp and lightly golden, five to seven minutes in the oven or three to five minutes in the air fryer.
• Let cool slightly, about 3 minutes. Toss into your salad or enjoy as a snack.

If you love crispy bacon or pork rinds, I highly recommend you try this chicharrón recipe! Chicharrones are an appetizer or snack made of crispy pork belly. Much like thick cut bacon, you can fry these on the stove top or bake in the oven. I think the oven method is much easier and results in this crunchy, salty and flavor-packed dish! You can enjoy chicharrones all on their own with a little fresh lime juice, or use in other recipes like chopped up over pasta, salad, rice dishes or even in ramen.

Chicharrón means “crackling” in Spanish. This is a popular dish in Spain and Latin America. To make homemade chicharrones, you only need three ingredients and an oven, so this popular finger food can easily be made by any home cook!

Related: Carnitas, Pozole, Al Pastor, Arepas, Agua Fresca, Elote, Cantarito.

Ingredients

• Pork belly
• Baking soda
• Limes
• Seasoning – salt and pepper or a mix like Pappy’s Seasoning, which you see in my photo below

Pork belly is also sometimes called or labeled “side meat” and you could also use pork skin.

The lime juice and baking soda help with better browning of the meat because it creates an alkaline environment. Science!

How to make Chicharrones

Cut the pork belly into roughly 1/2-inch (1.3 cm) strips. Try to keep them relatively uniform, but it’s OK if they aren’t all exactly the same thickness. Then cut notches along the bottom, the opposite of the skin/fat side.

Season the pork belly pieces with salt and pepper or whatever seasoning you are using on both sides.

Whisk or stir together the baking soda and lime juice in a small bowl. This will bubble and fizz (a normal chemical reaction). Brush the mixture on each of the pieces, front and back.

Place on a baking sheet or pan lined with aluminum foil, making sure the baking sheet has a lip or raised edge as quite a bit of fat/grease will cook off during the baking (oven frying). These are essentially going to fry in the oven. Bake at 300°F (149°C) for 90 minutes, flipping halfway through the baking time. I use tongs to flip these easily.

Move to a cooling rack to let any excess grease drip off. Serve warm with fresh lime wedges.

Tips and Notes

• Alternatively to the notches/chain style of cutting, you could cut into strips and then score the skin on top. The goal here is to give the heat and hot oil spaces to move around as these cook, creating lots of crispy edges.
• If you feel the chicharrón is not crispy enough by the end of baking, broil for 1-2 minutes on each side as needed.
• Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. I feel chicharrones are best the day they are made, but we will use the leftovers much like you would leftover bacon: chopped up in salads, soups or other dishes. I’m not above chopping it up to put in our dog’s food too—no need to waste any leftovers.

More Latin American-Inspired Recipes

These easy air fryer apple fritters are made with cottage cheese, sliced apples, and a simple homemade glaze. They’re crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. An amazing healthier twist on a classic sweet treat with all the iconic flavors of fall! I can’t wait for you to try this recipe .

Ingredients to Gather

• Diced apples: where are my honey crisp fans at?! I love the flavor and crisp texture of honey crisp apples, but you do you and choose the apple variety of your choice.
• 2% blended cottage cheese: any fuller fat cottage cheese will work for this recipe. I recommend at least 2%, but I’ve also tested this with 4% and it worked great. Any low fat cottage cheese will have a higher water content, which will require more flour to form into a dough.
• Brown sugar: you’ll toss the diced apples with brown sugar which is just straight up perfect fall flavors IMO.
• Ground cinnamon: same goes wit the cinnamon! It’s a perfect complement to the apple and brown sugar flavors of fall.
• Unsweetened almond milk: this is my preferred liquid for these fritters. Technically, any milk will work, but I prefer the mild flavor of plain, unsweetened almond milk.

Find the list of full ingredients in the recipe card below. 

My Method for Making Air Fryer Apple Fritters

1. Prepare the apples: Add the diced apples, brown sugar, and cinnamon to a bowl, and toss to coat the apple pieces. 
2. Prepare the dough: Add the dry ingredients to the bowl with the apples, and stir to mix. Then, add in the blended cottage cheese and stir until a ball starts to form. Then, use your hands to knead the dough in the bowl. Lightly flour a work surface and turn the dough out before cutting into 4 pieces. Place 2 apple fritters on parchment paper and press down to a traditional fritter shape (round or oblong). 
3. Air fry the fritters: Air fry the fritters, flipping halfway through to brown both sides.
4. Make the glaze: Add the powdered sugar and almond milk to a bowl and whisk to combine. That’s it! 
5. Glaze and enjoy! Dip the fritters into the glaze; set them on a wire rack, and allow the glaze to set for a few minutes before serving!

The Perfect Sweet Treat

I love making these apple fritters in the morning with the kiddos. Something about sitting in the porch on a cool fall morning enjoying one of these yummy treats with a cup of coffee while the kiddos play .

These apple fritters also make for a great after school snack or sweet treat after dinner. You really can’t go wrong with the ingredient list here, so choose your own adventure on when and where you serve ’em.

If You Have Leftovers

If you have leftover apple fritters, allow them to cool completely before storing on the counter in a vented bag. As the apples continue to soften over time, they will seep moisture and can cause the fritters to become soggy if stored in an airtight container. Venting it helps prevent this.

More Easy Air Fryer Recipes

Why did my apple fritters get soggy?

This could be happening for a couple reasons! If you crowd the apple fritters too much in the air fryer, it will actually steam them instead of air fry them. Make sure your fritters are not touching in the air fryer.

The other reason this could be happening is because you did not allow them to cool before storing leftovers. I recommend venting the bag or container you store leftovers in to prevent the apple moisture from creating a soggy texture. You can also air fry leftover fritters for a minute or two before serving to crisp them up again.

How do you prevent air fryer apple fritters from sticking to the basket?

I recommend cooking these apple fritters on parchment paper in the air fryer. Not only does it prevent them from sticking to the basket, it also prevents the lines from the grate on the air fryer from transferring onto the fritters.

Can I make these gluten-free?

I have not tested these apple fritters with GF flour, but my go-to is always Bob’s Red Mill 1:1. If you test this ingredient swap, please let me know how it goes in the comments!