Toast: 60 Ways to Butter Your Bread and Then Some

When I first saw this book, my first thought was "you have got to be kidding! An ENTIRE book on TOAST? Who is this woman kidding?" Truthfully, she's kidding no one. And the ideas are often amazing. Author Cool points out that toast is one of the most versatile things we make in the kitchen. She proceeds to offer up recipes for toast as breakfast, as an appetizer, as sandwiches, as main courses, and even as desserts. She correctly points out that there as many types of different toasts as there are kinds of bread, and many unique ways to use each in a variety of settings. From an orange French toast prepared in a waffle iron to Herb-crusted toast with creamy spinach and bacon, the recipes do not fail to interest and sometimes even intrigue, as I was with the recipe for "Grandmas Healing Toast" and the story behind it. I also loved her take on using toast to make a mini pepperoni pizza, and several ideas for main courses that are actually bruschetta recipes in disguise. I came away realizing that there are indeed a plethora of innovative, creative ways to make something as taken for granted as toast seem like a new and fresh way of spicing up a meal.