Twenty Two Ways To Eat Bread
By Carolyn Shields
When I’m at my laziest, or more likely, when I’m at my poorest, to the bread aisle I go. I’m a sucker for bread, especially the fancy kind. I think you know what I mean (or maybe not, maybe you’re thinking I’m referring to the Eucharist as fancy…which is kind of weird…but I’m referring to those artisan breads with the sprinkly floral patterns and stuff). Anyway, when you’re poor you can’t afford those breads and when your lazy you don’t make them. So I’m talking about your straight up wholesome grocery store loaf of sliced bread.
But honestly, you can do a heck of a lot with a Wonder loaf. And jokes aside, when money is tight, a peanut butter sandwich for lunch again might not sound appealing, so here are some ways to make that bread go a little bit further. Some are pretty obvious, but sometimes it just takes reading it to actually change it up a bit. Below are several ideas that only require at most an additional 3 ingredients you might not already have in your kitchen.
So:
Avocado toast. Mash an avocado, mix with salt and pepper, spread on toast.
French toast. Mix an egg, dip your bread in it, fry it.
Peanut butter and molasses bread. It’s my dad made for us kids every time he had to fix us lunch growing up. (Along with vegetable soup and home made milkshakes, ie, ice cream with milk).
Try different breads! Have you had Jewish Rye? Or whole wheat? They change everything.
Got ham and cheese for your classic well, ham and cheese sandwich? Toast it. Toast ANYTHING. And it honestly changes the whole sandwich.
Grilled cheese for when you’re really gettin’ low on food. (And try different cheeses too…)
Peanut Butter & Apple Toast. (I actually haven’t tried this, but it sounds delicious…I did just discover the magic of nutty peanut butter though on apples and WOW).
Summer Time: This is my go-to sandwich during the summer. Pesto, tomato slices, cheese, and bread. Add lettuce to go fancy!
BLT it. Do the exact same as above and add bacon.
Make croutons. Stale bread? That’s perfect for croutons to throw on your salad!
Nutella & Strawberry. This sounds gross to me, but whatever floats your boat.
Egg sandwich. Out of every gross thing I’ve ever eaten in my travels (a live scorpion in China, a fish head in Uganda…) nothing makes me gag like eggs do. And they smell so delicious! But I just can’t stomach it. Anyway.
Okay, get ready for this one. Make mac n’ cheese and toast your bread like a grilled cheese.
Butters and jams. Apple butter. Pumpkin jam. Go long.
Make them into homemade garlic slices.
Mushrooms, sauted kale, sliced cooked sweet potatoes, and gouda on toast. My gosh.
Make bruschetta. Baby tomatoes, onions, saute, add to toast, drizzle with olive oil.
Chicken salad. Ready? Can of chicken, some mayonnaise, salt and pepper to taste.
Tuna salad.
Hummus is a magic ingredient and an awesome source of protein. Simply add a slice of cheese and you’ve got gold.
Chutney is another easy way to dress up any average meat-and-cheese sandwich.
Asparagus, feta cheese, and bacon. You’re welcome.