Toast sandwich

Victorian recipe

A recipe for toast sandwiches is included in the invalid cookery section of the 1861 Book of Household Management by Isabella Beeton, who adds, "This sandwich may be varied by adding a little pulled meat, or very fine slices of cold meat, to the toast, and in any of these forms will be found very tempting to the appetite of an invalid."

Modern versions

In November 2011, the toast sandwich was recreated by the Royal Society of Chemistry in a tasting 150 years after the release of Beeton's Book of Household Management. The society sought to revive the forgotten dish in wake of the Great Recession after calculating the cost as low as per sandwich. They named it "the country's most economical lunch", offering to whoever could create a cheaper edible meal. Due to an overabundance of submissions, the offer was closed seven days later and the £200 given to a randomly selected entrant.

In Heston Blumenthal's restaurant the Fat Duck, 12 toast sandwiches are served as a side dish to the "Mad Hatter's Tea Party (circa 1892)", a main course inspired by Alice in Wonderland. Blumenthal's recipe for the toast sandwich involves bone marrow salad, egg yolk, mustard, gastrique, mayonnaise, and tomato ketchup.

Media coverage

The A.V. Club Mike Vago described it as an "extravagance of blandness". The Daily Meal article "12 Life-Changing Sandwiches You've Never Heard Of" said the toast sandwich was "just not that good ... Thankfully, the Dadaists didn't invent any more sandwiches after that."

The toast sandwich was discussed on The Leonard Lopate Show in an interview with The Sporkfuls Dan Pashman. Host Leonard Lopate commented, "it sounds weird to me". The game show panelists on NPR's Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! each tried the toast sandwich in a 2011 episode. Host Peter Sagal remarked, "This is the culinary equivalent of a Rothko painting. Or it's like a sandwich by Marcel Duchamp! It questions the essence of sandwich and language both!" A toast sandwich was served to comedian Romesh Ranganathan on a 2018 episode of the British comedy panel show QI. Although Ranganathan initially feigned insult, after trying it, he said the sandwich was enjoyable.

References

References

1. Lane, Megan. (17 November 2011). "The toast sandwich and other hyper-cheap meals". BBC News Magazine.
2. (16 November 2011). "Toast sandwich is UK's 'cheapest meal'". [[BBC News]].
3. (15 November 2011). "RSC press release: Mrs Beeton's toast sandwich".
4. Fort, Matthew. (16 November 2011). "The toast sandwich: can you jazz it up?".
5. (17 November 2011). "RSC Press Release: RSC inboxes overflowing with economical meal suggestions".
6. Dan Stock. (17 September 2014). "The Fat Duck in Melbourne: Heston Blumenthal has ballot system for bookings". [[News.com.au]].
7. Aaron Langmaid. (31 March 2014). "Fat chance you'll get a table at Heston Blumenthal's Fat Duck restaurant at Crown in Melbourne". [[Herald Sun]].
8. Sarah Rogozen. (31 December 2013). "Heston Blumenthal on Recreating Lewis Carroll's Mock Turtle Soup". [[KCRW]].
9. Mike Vago. (19 June 2016). "The powerful bread lobby wants you to read this article about sandwiches". [[The A.V. Club]].
10. Dan Myers. (27 February 2015). "12 Life-Changing Sandwiches You've Never Heard Of". [[The Daily Meal]].
11. Pashman, Dan. (24 July 2014). "What Is A Sandwich? (Or, John Hodgman Calls In To Leonard Lopate To Argue With Me)". Sporkful.
12. Lopate, Leonard. (24 July 2014). "Is a Hot Dog a Sandwich?". [[WNYC]].
13. Ian Chillag. (28 November 2011). "Sandwich Monday: The Toast Sandwich". [[NPR]].
14. (5 July 2021). "QI {{!}} History Of The Toast Sandwich". QI (official channel).
15. Beeton, Isabella. (1861). "The Book of Household Management". S. O. Beeton.