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Small-Scale Question Sunday for March 30, 2025

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

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I recently discovered the deliciousness of toasted croissants, which is not a type of bread I would have expected would be improved by toasting. In light of that experience, I’m wondering if there are any other types of bread that are not conventionally toasted but that are improved by the process. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Neither are unconventional but....

  1. Banana bread should always be toasted. toasted till the (salted) butter burns. Heaven on earth.
  2. Pain Perdu = French toast. But, instead of adding sugar into the mixture, you sprinkle it on the soaked bread and then toast it in butter.

I suspect Brazilian cheese bread will toast great.

My wife and in-laws are Mexican and I've come to learn that Mexicans love to toast all forms of bread and find it a bit weird to eat untoasted bread. It seems like basically all forms of bread taste good toasted, but I still prefer sourdough and good french breads untoasted to preserve their chewy texture.

When I have day-old homemade muffins on hand (admittedly a state of affairs that occurs less and less often as my children grow larger) I've been known to slice them in half for toasting and buttering.

Also, do you consider banana bread to be something not conventionally toasted? Because toasted banana bread is pretty great too.

I have to thumbs up this - those who have not toasted sweet breakfast breads like the above are missing out. A muffin cut in half and then fried in butter like this is absolutely sublime.

I have never thought to toast banana bread before, but I’ll have to give it a shot the next time I buy or make some. Thanks!

Try toasting croissants open with ham, cheese and tomato filling.

I just discovered that Lidl sells fresh baked croissants 2 for a dollar and that they are f'ing amazing right out of the oven!

Croissants are f-ing incredible. I used to be anti-croissant because of how messy and crumbly they are. I preferred a muffin or a bagel, something that caused far less of a mess. But after trying some outstanding croissants, I am a huge advocate. Croissants in Europe are particularly delectable, it’s hard to find anything in the US that rivals pastries from Italy or France.

If you live in the US and have access to Trader Joe’s, they sell sliced sourdough bread that is excellent toasted and combined with TJs cultured salted butter. The butter is the key, it’s honestly the best bang for your buck delicious butter you can buy, and this combo makes a great snack or dinner pairing.

Do you know if Trader Joe’s butter is anything like Kerrygold butter? I heard from many different people over a span of about 15 years that Kerrygold butter is the best butter. I finally bought some, and I have to say, I wasn’t impressed. I actually prefer regular old American-style salted butter.

I definitely agree. Kerrygold is wildly overrated. The only thing that's really different about it to me is the color. I can't say I notice a difference in taste.

It's different. Kerrygold butter, to me, tastes like any normal butter. Trader Joe's carries two types of butter: their normal "typical" butter (for which Kerrygold would be a one-to-one replacement) and their specialty cultured butter. The Trader Joe's cultured salted butter (comes in blue packaging) is better than any butter I've ever had.

Forgive me for hijacking your post but I just recently discovered that actual croissant bread is a Thing thanks to Costco and I have to agree that it's incredibly, decadently delicious when toasted and buttered IMO. I've also done grilled egg and cheese sandwiches with it that are decadently divine. I want to do some straight grilled cheese and maybe even french toast with it before it's all gone. If I had the recipe and was feeling grave, I might even go so far as to try cinnamon strudel french toast with it, but the resulting sugar high/crash scares me. Anyway, carry on!