Recipes Bread + Dough Baguette 14 Ways to Use a Baguette By Food & Wine Editors Updated on February 15, 2023 Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos Photo: © John Kernick The French treat baguettes like sacred objects. And who can blame them? These light, crisp, chewy loaves are delicious unadorned. There's even a preferred way to eat them — breaking off the heel, or le quignon, to snack on as soon as you leave the bakery. French baguettes are actually protected by law: The serious-sounding Bread Decree of 1993 requires they be made on the same premises where they're sold, are never frozen, and contain only flour, water, yeast, and salt. From sandwiches to toasts and bread puddings, these are our favorite ways to eat baguettes. 01 of 14 Zucchini-Tomato Strata © Andrew Purcell A French take on strata, or savory bread pudding, this simple summer dish contains zucchini, onion, and tomatoes layered with slices of baguette, then baked with chicken stock and a little cream. Get the Recipe 02 of 14 French Seafood Bisque with Baguette Photo by Greg DuPree / Food Styling by Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Claire Spollen The freshest seafood — preferably sourced from your local fishmonger — is the highlight of this velvety-smooth bisque. Take care to cook each type as directed to preserve its delicate flavor and texture. This resourceful recipe uses every last bit of your briny haul, yielding a rich seafood soup to sop up with baguette slices. Get the Recipe 03 of 14 French Onion Baked Brie Matt Taylor-Gross / Food Styling by Amelia Rampe If that first spoonful of French onion soup — with toasted bread, melted cheese, and savory caramelized onions — is your favorite, then you’ll love this appetizer, which is a decadent mash-up of French onion soup and baked Brie. Smear the cheesy snack on slices of toasted baguette. Get the Recipe 04 of 14 Barbecue Shrimp Po’boy Frederick Hardy II / Food Styling by Melissa Gray / Prop Styling by Christina Brockman Smoky, spiced shrimp are the heart of this classic New Orleans-style po’boy sandwich. Try to find baguettes or rolls with a thin, crackly crust and soft interior for these po’boys, so the spiced shrimp and mayonnaise can soak in while the bread retains its integrity. Get the Recipe 05 of 14 Buttery Crab Bread Pudding © Kate Mathis In this recipe from the River Cottage Fish Book, chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall layers baguette and lump crabmeat, then pours custard on top. Get the Recipe 06 of 14 Lima Bean and Ricotta Crostini © Con Poulos F&W culinary director at large Justin Chapple thinks that lima beans deserve a place on every table, especially when they're made into a bright, herby salad and piled onto crunchy and creamy ricotta toasts. Get the Recipe 07 of 14 French Onion Soup with Roasted Poblanos Photo by Greg DuPree / Food Styling by Torie Cox / Prop Styling by Prissy Lee Montiel At Tzuco, in Chicago, the French onion soup arrives to the table piping hot, topped with a bubbling layer of Gruyère cheese. Hiding under the blanket of cheese, a thick slice of baguette soaks up a soup suffused with flavor from a mountain of jammy onions, balsamic vinegar, and bay leaves. Get the Recipe 08 of 14 Goat Cheese-Garlic Toasts © Anne Faber This creamy take on garlic bread from star chef Wolfgang Puck is one of our favorite appetizers. Brush the baguette with olive oil and either toast it in the oven or on the grill. Get the Recipe 09 of 14 Bacon and Butter Sandwiches © Marcus Nilsson Pastry genius Dominique Ansel gives the beloved English “bacon butty” a French accent by subbing a slender baguette for the standard white toast. Flavor upgrade: Ansel replaces the traditional ketchup with sherry. Get the Recipe 10 of 14 Kemptville Blueberry Bread Pudding © Maura McEvoy This bread pudding is named after a town near Trout Point Lodge in Nova Scotia that sells much of the local wild blueberry harvest. The optional white chocolate chunks provide an extra bit of creamy sweetness. Get the Recipe 11 of 14 Beef Tenderloin Sandwiches with Norton-Shiitake Sauce © Kirsten Strecker Riddle's Penultimate Cafe & Wine Bar in St. Louis mentions many of the local farmers who supply the ingredients on its quirky menu. Chef-owner Andy Ayers loves the organic shiitakes from Ozark Forest Mushrooms' farm in Salem, Missouri, because they add an intensely earthy flavor to these meaty, garlicky sandwiches with their wine-spiked sauce. Get the Recipe 12 of 14 Citrus and Fennel Chicken with Olives and Calabrian Chiles Photo by Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Torie Cox / Prop Styling by Claire Spollen A mix of citrus, buttery olives, and spicy, oil-packed chiles punches up the flavor of braised chicken leg quarters. Toasted fennel seeds and dry sherry add a pleasant warmth to the sauce, which begs to be served with a baguette for sopping. Get the Recipe 13 of 14 Herbed Chickpea Bruschetta © John Kernick The key to this delicious bruschetta from chef Nancy Silverton is lots of olive oil. After she bakes the chickpeas with a variety of flavorings — including onions, pancetta, and carrots — she purees them with a good amount of oil, spreads the puree on baguette toasts, and drizzles with a little more oil. Get the Recipe 14 of 14 Kentucky Hot Brown Macaroni and Cheese Photo by Jennifer Causey / Food Styling by Margret Monroe Dickey / Prop Styling by Claire Spollen The Kentucky Hot Brown is a classic open-faced sandwich created by Fred Schmidt in 1926 at The Brown Hotel in Louisville; it features thick Texas toast topped with slices of roast turkey, tomato, and bacon and doused with Mornay sauce. Here, we took the essential components of a Hot Brown and combined them for an untraditional macaroni and cheese with the soul of the original. The halved cherry tomatoes add pops of brightness to each bite of pasta coated in the rich, creamy sauce, while a crunchy bacon and bread topping nods to the dish's origins. Get the Recipe Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit