Toast sandwich
A toast sandwich is a very simple and economical sandwich made by putting a thin slice of toast between two thin slices of bread with a layer of butter, and adding salt and pepper to taste. Its origins can be traced to the Victorian years. A recipe for making it is included on the 1861 Book of Household Management by Isabella Beeton. [1]
The key role played by the textures felt by the mouth
Although this sandwich is very simple, the collection of textures presented by the butter, the slices of bread and the toast can make its consumption a surprisingly pleasant experience.
Many variations can easily be devised and tested in order to improve the mouthfeel. For example, one may use cold or hot toast, melted or room-temperature butter, toast made from bread containing herbs, an additional slice of integral bread (with or without raisins) and many other variations. Butter can also be substituted with a little extra-virgin olive oil when using savory variants of bread and toast.
Toast sandwiches can be used instead of bread when accompanying meals. They can make an excellent compliment for the mouthfeel given by pasta, salad or aspic dishes.
Recognition of its low cost
The sandwich has been named by the scientists of the Royal Society of Chemistry "Britain's cheapest lunchtime meal" in November 2011, with the cost cited as being as low as 7.5 UK pence per sandwich. [2] The reality of this claim, however, has been questioned.[citation needed]
References
- ^ Lane, Megan. "The toast sandwich and other hyper-cheap meals". BBC News Magazine.
- ^ "Toast sandwich is UK's 'cheapest meal'". BBC UK.