WWW.MOTHEREARTHNEWS.COM 39To make, prepare a few slices of bread
about^1 ⁄ 4 inch thick, trim off the crusts,
and lightly spread with butter on both
sides. Fry on a griddle over medium heat
until light brown. Cut in half or quarters,
place a few pieces in a soup bowl, ladle on
some soup, and enjoy.
Bread crisps. These are delicious crack-
ers that are easy to make. Thinly slice a
few pieces of bread (no more than^1 ⁄ 4
inch). Trim off the crust, and then cut in
halves or quarters. Toast to golden in an
oven heated to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
Perfect for cheese, spreads, liver pâté, and
country pâté.
Cinnamon toast. A warming topping
for toast on cold winter mornings and
always a favorite of children. Take one
slice of cinnamon toast with tea me-
dicinally when you’re feeling down. Mix
cinnamon and sugar in a ratio of 1 part
cinnamon to 2 parts sugar, and then ad-
just to taste. Toast bread, spread liberally
with room-temperature butter, sprinkle
thickly with the cinnamon sugar, and
serve hot.
French toast. The French call it pain
perdu, or lost bread. I think of it as
found happiness. I have been known to
mix up a batch of this French bread just
to make it into French toast.
Per thick slice of bread, use 1 egg
beaten with^1 ⁄ 4 cup milk. Pour into a
flat-bottomed dish, soak each slice until
saturated, 1 or 2 minutes per side, and
then fry in butter over medium heatuntil brown. Serve with the topping of
your choice, such as maple syrup or a
sprinkling of sugar and lemon.
Bread and butter pudding. I put
this in the class of “dangerous dishes.”
I don’t make this often because I can’t
stop eating it. This is the recipe I grew
up with, so it’s a dish full of memories.
My mother made it in late fall through
early spring, when the nights were cold.
What makes a bread pudding a pudding
is the custard it’s soaked in.
First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
To make the custard, lightly whisk 4eggs in a bowl, along with^1 ⁄ 4 cup sugar,
add 1 quart milk, and set aside. Then,
bring 2 cups of water to boil and add(^3) ⁄ 4 cup raisins. Parboil (partially cook)
the raisins for 3 minutes, strain, and
set aside. Cut off the crust on all four
sides of a loaf that weighs 1 pound, and
slice it into^1 ⁄ 2 -inch slices. Butter one
side with room-temperature butter.
Then, butter the sides of a 9-cup souf-
flé mold. Layer the bread, butter side
down, spreading raisins on each layer.
Add the custard. Let stand for 30 min-
utes, and then bake for 1 hour, or until
the top is browned and a knife inserted
comes out clean.
William Rubel began baking bread at
11 years old and has been baking ever
since. Find his book Bread: A Global
History on Page 80.
Classic cinnamon toast smeared with butter evokes childhood and warms up cold mornings.
Bread and butter pudding, soaked in custard, is a dish the author classifies as “dangerous.”
The French call French The French call French The French call French
toast toast toast pain perdupain perdupain perdu, or , or , or
lost bread. I think of it lost bread. I think of it lost bread. I think of it
as found happiness. as found happiness. as found happiness.
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