Bloomberg Businessweek - USA (2020-12-21)

59

THEONE BloombergPursuits December 21, 2020

One way to not live like a bread-baking peasant

Photograph by Ted & Chelsea Cavanaugh

Give Us This Day

Our Daily Toast

Making toast
is the simplest
of endeavors.
Perhaps that’s why
manufacturers feel
so compelled to
foist touchscreens
and internet
connectivity onto
their latest toasting
contraptions. The
$340 Dualit 4 Slice
NewGen toaster,
on the other hand,
does one thing
sublimely. Controls
are kept to a pair
of chunky dials,
one for selecting
the number of bread
slices or bagels
you’re toasting, the
other for choosing
timer and defrost
settings. Dualits
are handmade in
England, just as
they’ve been since
the middle of the
20th century. (Liam
built the one we
tested, according
to a sticker on the
bottom.) This model
comes in more than
20 colors, though
the original polished
stainless-steel finish
remains the most
popular choice.

THE CASE

Simple, reliable,

repairable, and built

like a streamlined

tank, the Dualit

NewGen is a solid

piece of industrial

design that will last

for generations.

The 28-millimeter

slots accommodate

bread slices as thick

as an inch; they

can even hold an

entire panini with an

optional “sandwich

cage.” After the

mica-coated heating

elements inside

turn the bread

a golden brown,

your toast doesn’t

automatically pop

up; instead, it stays

warmly nestled

inside until you

gently press the

manual lever on the

bottom to make it

rise. $340; dualit.com

WHAT TO TOAST

• A proper British
  toaster deserves
  proper British bread,
  like the thick-sliced
  loaf ($13, pictured)
  Parker’s imports to
  the U.S. from the
  family-run Henllan
  Bakery in Wales.
  Complete an order
  with Marmite,
  marmalade, English
  bacon, and other
  essentials.
  
  
  • From the land of
    avocado toast comes
    Manresa Bread, a
    gluten-glorifying
    offshoot of David
    Kinch’s restaurant
    in Silicon Valley. A
    $40 sourdough box
    includes whole-
    wheat and levain
    loaves, a cranberry-
    orange-walnut
    bread, and, crucially,
    a sandwich-style
    option.
    
    
    • Zingerman’s, an
      Ann Arbor, Mich.,
      institution, offers
      a $14 German-
      style dinkelbrot
      with locally grown
      and milled spelt
      grain—plus rye,
      honey, caraway,
      anise, coriander, and
      mashed potatoes.
      Before baking, it’s
      coated in sunflower
      seeds to add a nutty
      crunch to every bite.