Chilled Lettuce Soup with Homemade Croutons

Ok, so the croutons aren't totally homemade. I bought some rye bread, and as usual it sat around for a long time before I realized I wouldn't be able to eat the whole thing. So I decided to make croutons! My own seasoning and everything...

The soup is legitimately very healthy though. I found ways to add flavor, and it really does taste much better when well chilled. My recipe is very different from, but still adapted from, this one my Mark Bittman.

Chilled Lettuce Soup
2 head of romaine lettuce, thinly sliced
1/2 large red onion, sliced
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
3 cups chicken stock, low sodium or homemade
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup tahini
1 1/2 cup ice water
Salt and pepper to taste

Saute onions and seeds for about 5 minutes in olive oil. Do not burn. Add your stock and lettuce. Cover and cook at a medium heat until lettuce is wilted. Add tahini, salt, pepper and ice water. Somehow, manage to get it all into a blender. Blend until you've reached a nice consistency.

The tahini gave this light soup a creamy flavor similar to this one. Serve with these croutons.
Croutons
3 cups of stale bread, coarsely chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil cooking spray

In a large baking sheet, spray bread with cooking spray. Add spices, salt and pepper. Toss so that croutons will be evenly coated, but make sure they all lay flat on the pan. Bake for 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees, taking them out to toss once.

Just watch these carefully, so you don't scorch them. In my opinion, rye bread tastes pretty good as slightly burnt croutons.