WASHINGTON — TV celebrity chef Martha Stewart raised online eyebrows when she posted Instagram video of French toast, bubbling in an oil-filled pan. To some netizens’ displeasure, Stewart’s recipe appears to use several ounces of butter: a calorific start to anybody’s day. Comments below her video ranged from mild mockery to abject rage.
“French toast @Republiquebrioche @runamoksyrup milk, eggs, orange zest, Grand Marnier, sugar, pinch of salt [sic] yummy,” writes Stewart in her post. Such a heavy French toast serving may not be everyone’s idea of a meal in itself, but who is anybody to argue? The entrepreneur and TV star is 82 years old and in great health.
The Carb Police
To some skeptics, toast equals carbohydrates, the bane of nutritionists and healthy living experts everywhere. Regardless, they remain an essential part of most people’s diets. Mayo Clinic recommends consuming whole grains, which contain B vitamins and a more refined grain structure. Toast can also be a healthy meal option, though if eaten at the right time. Cleveland Clinic says the earlier, the better.
Breakfast still has the monopoly on toast in the United States, but why restrict toast to one mealtime?
Seeing The Northern Light
Europeans have already seen the toast-as-a-meal light, especially in northern regions. Sweden enjoys Skagenröra, a Nordic shrimp salad usually served on rye toast. Amica shares a Swedish favorite, using graddfil, a Swedish sour cream seasoned with brandy, mixed with small shrimp, then topped with roe and dill. The options for the base are endless: those with a penchant for white toast, muffins, or toasted bagels can enjoy this filling meal.
The English Toast Relationship
The English have a national favorite, which, to the horror of some Americans, is baked beans on toast. A U.S. TikTok user with the handle jchelle36 hurt English feelings a few years ago when presenting her take on the meal. Claiming to live in the United Kingdom, she presented a version that consisted of baked beans poured on untoasted bread, microwaved with cheese on top. Clearly, she was trolling her hosts.
In reality, the English tinned legumes approach has different levels that even discerning toast lovers might enjoy. Most English traditionalists prefer the no-nonsense toast, butter, and beans method. However, adding caramelized onions and garlic, chopped meat, and different spice combinations can make the humble baked bean sing.
Mexican Beans on Toast
Vegans can also benefit from a beans-on-toast ethos, especially with this Plant Based News recipe packed with toasted hazelnuts, hummus, and drizzled olive oil. Furthermore, beans on toast doesn’t have to come from a tin, though Mexico has a version that anybody can recreate using canned refried beans and tastes even better: molletes de frijoles.
Mexico is no stranger to bread-based dinners, though some may not associate toast as part of the Mexican repertoire. Although toasted bolillos (white, football-shaped crusty rolls) usually form the base, this version from MyEverydayTable uses discs of oven-toasted French bread. Molletes are a fast, convenient meal. All one must do is spread the refried beans, top with Mexican cheese like asadero or Oaxaca then bake in a hot oven. The beauty of molletes is that they can come garnished with pico de gallo, fire-roasted chili salsa, or avocado slices.
The Special Relationship With Cheese
Another adaptable toast partner is cheese, used to varying degrees in several countries. Starting in Wales, Welsh rarebit is toast smothered in a cheese, mustard, and ale-based bechamel, topped with Worcestershire sauce. One might call this an open grilled cheese, similar in some ways to France’s croque monsieur (the same but poured over a broiled ham topping).
If heavier cheeses like Cheddar or Monterey Jack don’t appeal to toast lovers, there are other, lighter choices. Whipped cottage cheese makes a lovable alternative, though, for those with access to it, fresh ricotta toast is hard to beat. Ricotta’s neutral flavor provides a malleable platform for other ingredients, making ricotta toast hard to beat for any time of the day.
Ricotta Toast for the Win
While it doesn’t suit the vegan palette, vegetarians have endless possibilities with a ricotta base. Topping with roasted peppers, tomatoes, or beets or turning it into a sweeter breakfast option using chopped fruits goes just as well. Savory Ricotta toast selections can also go with a side salad — even a soup accompaniment.
Perhaps the world’s most famous toast manifestation is avocado toast. This coffee shop staple is popular across the Anglosphere and beyond, especially in Australia, long considered its official home. Australian chef Bill Granger, who died this year aged 54, brought Aussie café culture to the world, making “avo toast” a firm part of the zeitgeist.
The Avocado Toast Phenomenon
However, a 2018 Taste article discusses the merits of this recipe and drops the controversial — yet justified — hypothesis that Australia does not hold this title. Food writer Mari Uyehara argues that while Australia is the first country to put the item on a menu, it was likely Mexico (again) that started the tradition, albeit on toasted tortillas.
The Puebla region reportedly mentioned avocados almost 10,000 years ago, according to avocado experts at Avoseedo. Since then, the Spanish Conquistadors brought them to Europe, opening a literal new world of ingredients for generations to come. From this point, avocado toast made its 500-year journey to Australia’s East Coast.
Avocado toast has made headlines in the past. In 2017, businessman Tim Gurner irked Australian millennials for their spendthrift avocado toast habits. “When I was trying to buy my first home, I wasn’t buying smashed avocado for $19 (AUD) and four coffees at $4 each,” said Gurner in response to youngsters’ complaints of unaffordable mortgages. Regardless, avocado (or smashed avocado) toast is still eaten across America, driven in part by the rise of veganism and America’s now ingrained coffee culture.
Cost-Efficient and Delicious
One takeaway from any debate on toast is the price. The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) conducted a 2011 experiment in Britain, discovering that the cheapest lunchtime meal one could eat was a “toast sandwich.” While this consists of two buttered, seasoned bread slices wrapped around a toast slice, 13 years have passed without much popularity.
Nevertheless, toast continues to be a worthy and well-priced meal contender fit for any dinner occasion.
This article was produced by Media Decision and syndicated by Wealth of Geeks.
–Ben Rice
Wealth of Geeks
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