
Grilled Cheese Croutons
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These grilled cheese croutons are a fun and delicious way to top your tomato soup! They're crispy, cheesy, and easy to make in just 20 minutes!
For a delicious sweet and spicy spin on grilled cheese, try our grilled cheese and apple sandwich with sriracha butter.

Who can resist these toasty, ooey-gooey, mini grilled cheeses? Not us!
We're taking homemade croutons up a notch and turning everyone's childhood favorite sandwich into bite-sized grilled cheese croutons. They're a flavorful, feel-good topper for soups, and they're really easy to make.
The best part about any homemade recipe is that you can use your favorite ingredients. For these grilled cheese croutons, we keep it classic with white sandwich bread and sharp cheddar cheese, but any cheese and bread will work (even if the bread's a bit stale).
Simply make grilled cheese as you normally would. Butter your bread, load it up with grated sharp cheddar cheese, and grill it until it's golden and crispy. Then slice off the crusts, and cut them into little cubes. Don't ditch the crusts though, they're perfect for dunking into soup!
A bowl of tomato soup with grilled cheese croutons is sure to lift spirits on the coldest and rainiest of days. If you have any leftover croutons, warm them up in the oven the next day and they'll be extra crispy and delicious!

Grilled cheese croutons ingredients
Here's what you need to make these crunchy grilled cheese croutons:
- Butter – make sure your butter is at room temperature so you can spread it evenly over each slice of bread.
- Bread – we use white sandwich bread, but you can use any kind of sliced bread like wholewheat, rye bread, or gluten-free if needed.
- Sharp cheddar cheese – a sharp cheddar cheese gives these croutons a bold cheesy flavor. Feel free to mix it up with your favorite cheese like swiss cheese, havarti, gouda, or monterey jack.
How to make grilled cheese croutons
These gooey grilled cheese croutons are the perfect addition to tomato soup. It's just like making regular grilled cheese, but sliced into small squares. Here's how we make them in a few simple steps:
- Spread butter on one side of each slice of bread.
- Place two pieces of bread, buttered side down, on a heated frying pan. Top the slices with grated cheese and then sandwich them with the other two slices, buttered sides up.
- Cook until they're golden on the bottom, flip them, and cook a few minutes more until the cheese is visibly melty.
- Let them cool for a few minutes, slice off the crusts (but don't toss them!), and cut them into small squares. (Save the crusts for dipping in soup!

What goes with grilled cheese croutons
These grilled cheese croutons are of course the perfect match for tomato soup. They're what we serve with our tomato cheddar soup, which is pictured above. They also taste incredible with our simple tomato bacon soup.
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Recipe FAQs
What's the best type of cheese to use?
We like classic sharp cheddar cheese, but any cheese that melts well will work. Try swiss cheese, havarti, gouda, or monterey jack.
How do I store leftover croutons?
If you have some leftovers, store them in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days. To reheat, place them on a baking sheet and warm them in the oven until they're crisp.

Favorite crouton recipes

Grilled Cheese Croutons Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter (at room temperature)
- 4 slices white sandwich bread
- 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese (shredded)
Instructions
- Spread the butter on one side of each of the slices of bread.1 tablespoon butter
- Heat a large frying pan over medium heat. Add two slices of the bread, buttered side down. Sprinkle the cheese on top of the bread and then top with the other two slices buttered side up.4 slices white sandwich bread, 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese
- Cook for 2-3 minutes, until the bottom is golden brown. Flip the sandwiches over and cook for another 2-3 minutes until both sides are golden and the cheese has melted.
- Remove the grilled cheese sandwiches from the pan and let them cool for 5 minutes. Use a serrated knife to cut off the crusts – save them for dipping in soup! Then, cut the sandwiches into 1-inch croutons.
Video
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
For more inspiration, make sure to check out all our soup recipes!