It’s no secret that I love bread.
When this commercial came out by our Queen and Savior, Oprah, I never felt more *seen.*
And honestly who doesn’t like bread?
Bread is the most widely consumed food in the world, and has been for thousands of years. Research suggests that humans started baking bread at least 30,000 years ago - it’s imbedded in so many cultures and different diets. It wasn’t until bread was industrialized at the turn of the 20th century that it all went to shit.
Real bread is naturally leavened. It ferments by sitting out - carbon dioxide is produced and trapped in tiny pockets of air within the dough, which causes it to rise naturally. Also during fermentation, it gets richer and more complex in flavor and develops qualities that are actually great for your digestion - like fiber, nutrients, minerals, and enzymes. However, baking in this style takes a significant amount of time and is hard to do at scale. So, in order to keep up with industrialization around the mid-20th century, companies started to add chemical additives (think yeast and preservatives) in order to reduce the necessary fermentation time and therefore speed up production time. This is the kind of bread that is bad for you. Not only will it make you feel fat - but the real problem is that these chemical additives then disrupt the digestion process and actually can end up causing gluten-intolerance and celiac. To boot - it just doesn’t taste that good.
And so here we have landed over the last 20 years - the declaration that bread is just plain bad for you. That even thought we all love it, it should be considered some kind of guilty pleasure. When really, naturally leavened bread, the way it’s been done for thousands of years, is actually good for you! It’s that commercial shit in the grocery store that will make you feel sick and fat.
As Julia Child says:
How can a nation be called great if its bread tastes like Kleenex?
I wouldn’t say this nation “great,” especially these days, but I agree, Julia! Put down that Kleenex bread, head to your local bakery, and get yourself some naturally leavened bread.
Got your great bread? Ok, so then we’re just getting started. The best part is coming up with what to top it with.
Bread is also such a beautiful vehicle to eat all the ingredients you love anyway, but not sure exactly how to effectively shove in your mouth.
True story: A Baked Joint was originally supposed to be a toast bar. Back in 2014, there was no bread scene in DC to speak of, or even really on the East Coast. We were inspired by spots in San Francisco that were making amazing naturally leavened bread, and then serving them up simple toasts. This way, the star of the show would really be the yummy bread. Unfortunately, our concept leaked and we were instantly reamed for this “hipster” menu. With all the bad feedback, we withdrew the plan and decided to focus on good ole’ sandwiches instead - nobody seemed offended by those!
Although we didn’t make them the main attraction, we decided to keep a small selection of toasts - with spreads like “peanut butter and jam” and “nutella and banana” - classics we all grew up with that we thought could at least be a complimentary dish.
But in the end, the toast really stole so many people’s hearts. And of course they do! They are homey, cheap, and delicious. Looking back, I wonder if this idea was so simple and nostalgic that it seemed we were trying to make some kind of ironic hipster statement. Kind of like buying a vintage-looking Joy Division shirt from Urban Outfitters.
I’m always playing around with lil’ toasts. They’re so yummy, easy to put together and they keep me full - what more can you ask for? I love this toast recipe because it’s full of so much good good that I always like to keep in my kitchen anyway. I also like to assume it’s good for me just because all the ingredients are the color green.
Green Good Good Toast
There’s no exact measurement here since it will depend on your bread vehicle of choice / your personal preference. Have fun with it!
Ingredients
Big ole’ slice of sourdough or a half bagel is yummy here too!
1 avocado
A drizzle of olive oil
1/4 cup fresh dill, roughly chopped
A few pinches of za’atar
A few pinches of Maldon, or course sea salt
A few cranks of pepper
A pinch of toasted sesame seeds
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Let’s do it!
Slice your bread and get her toasted up nice.
Take your avocado and slice it up. Here’s my avocado technique: Criss-cross on top to make a grid. Take a spoon and scoop it out onto the bread. Take a fork and mash it on to the bread. There are definitely more beautiful and elegant ways to do this (see the Avocado Rose) but at the end of the day, it’s getting covered with a lot more good good so who the hell cares.
Drizzle with olive oil.
Sprinkle some Maldon salt and za’atar and crank some pepper.
Top with the fresh dill. If any of you are not sure how you feel about dill, think again. I will shout my praise of dill from all the rooftops in New York City. It’s fresh, and flowery, a little salty, and light. Plus it just looks so pretty.
Squeeze a little lemon juice.
Top with toasted sesame seeds.
Sprinkle a little more Maldon.
Remember to gently whisper to your bread “I love you” - it deserves a positive affirmation!
Happy cooking. Love ya mucho,
Tessa
It worked now after attempting several times
Still the same issue...thanks and sorry