National Toast Day (UK)

National Toast Day is celebrated on the Last Thursday in February every year. It is a chance to test how often you eat toast. You can try different ways to enjoy this snack and get creative with the layout on your plate.

History of Toast

Of course, the history of toast begins with bread. The earliest archaeological evidence for flour dates back to around 30,000 years, and flatbread is likely around this time as well.

Being a main food in many civilizations, bread was sometimes used as an offering to the gods in ancient Greece. Wheat and barley were some of the first crops to be domesticated in the Fertile Crescent - although not as nutritious as other food sources can be obtained, bread obtained from cereal crops can still sustain a larger population. The ability to make bread is thought to have been a factor in helping ancient peoples put an end to the nomadic way of life and settle in one place.

Bread we know today was invented since ancient Egypt. The Egyptians learned that if they left the dough out for a while, it would float. When baking, the bread will retain its puffy shape. This is, of course, because yeast spores in the air find their way to the dough.

Closed ovens were invented in Egypt for baking leavened bread in 3000 BC, and the workers who built the famous pyramids were often paid in part with bread. At this point in history, yeast bread was a lighter bread that was considered much nicer than flatbread. There was only one problem: left in the heat of the desert for a long time, it became hard and difficult to eat.

Solution? Toasted bread. It seems that toast originated as a way to preserve bread rather than as a delicious breakfast dish laced with butter and jam. By burning the slices of bread, they last longer as a tasty treat. (This is also why "French" Toast was first made - all so as not to waste food.)

The practice of baking bread became common in the Roman Empire. The word "toast" actually comes from the Latin "tostum," which means, "to burn or scorch." The first breads can be baked by placing them in front of a fire on a hot stone. Later, simple devices were created to bake bread in a fire, such as wire frames to bake bread more evenly, or even sticks like we use to bake marshmallows over a campfire now on.

The first electric toaster was invented in 1893 by Scotsman Alan MacMasters, but it was not very popular. Iron wiring often melts, creating a fire hazard. That is if everyone could use a toaster, as electricity was not common at this time.

In 1905, two inventors in Chicago created an alloy that was highly resistant to fire. That means others can shoot again with a safer, more efficient electric toaster. At the same time, there were several electric toasters. These toasters can only bake one side of the bread at a time, and then the bread has to be flipped. Future developments included automatic toast machines (created in 1913) and semi-automatic toasters, which turned off the heating element when the bread was cooked. The "modern" timer pop-up toaster was created in 1919.

At this point, an invention is being worked on that makes eating toast in the morning even easier: pre-cut bread. Otto Frederick Rohwedder of Davenport, Iowa was invented the first automatic bread slicer in the world.  In 1912, he built a bread slicer. Unfortunately, his blueprint and machine were destroyed in a fire in 1917.

Since then, he has struggled to get funding to restart his machine because the idea of ​​pre-cut bread was not popular with bakers. That's right, even the invention of sliced ​​bread first - which would soon give us the phrase "best thing since sliced ​​bread" - was difficult to sell at first because bakers worried that the bread would spoil before it could be sold. They also feel that reducing the shelf life of bread will be unpopular with consumers, even if it is properly packaged to try to delay the inevitable stagnation as much as possible.

Finally, in 1927, Rohwedder was able to rebuild his machine and produce a ready-to-use model in an actual bakery. To solve the "tough" problem, Rohwedder initially tried to hold the pieces of bread together after cutting with pins. The pins will then be removed when you want a slice. This didn't really work for a variety of reasons and he ended up simply modifying his machine to wrap the cut loaves in wax paper immediately after cutting.

Pre-cut bread has helped to further popularize toast and toasters, as it is easy to take several even slices, put them in the toaster, and have breakfast a few minutes later. Finally, as they say, is history.

History of National Toast Day

The Tiptree World Bread Awards alongside Brook Food to celebrate the nation’s love of toast founded national Toast Day in 2014.

The Tiptree World Bread Awards with Brook Food established National Toast Day in 2014. The humble piece of toast is a national treasure and we think it deserves a dedicated anniversary, which has become a phenomenon that are interested in too much.

Unfortunately, National Toast Day is not celebrated in the same way as other food-related days, such as Pancake Day, a day of great celebration. During Pancake Day, the whole world became obsessed with pancakes; New products are sold, advertisements are customized, new products are launched.

Available on BBC Radio 2 Chris Evans Breakfast Show, Good Morning America, the Sun, the Metro and more. It is the number one Twitter trend in the UK; with social media engagement from many organizations including NHS, Iron Maiden, MasterChef, Paddington Bear, Great British Bake Off, Aston Villa, Paul Young, You Gov, Coronation Street, British Heart Foundation, Hell's Kitchen USA, BBC 3, Love Food Hate Waste, This Morning and many more.

Enjoy toast as your choice for breakfast (or lunch or dinner) on National Toast Day. Feel free to experiment with overlays and share your favorites with the world. On the other hand, even host a barbecue and tea party!

This year, National Toast Day wants to bring joy to food and calls on the whole country to turn toast into art to celebrate our favorite crunchy dish.

The art of baking bread is a sensation; it is huge in Japan and has been explored by a number of artists, such as Nathan Wyburn, who famously underpinned many members of the upper classes of society including Jimmy Carr, Simon Cowell and Boris Johnson.

How can you create your #toastart? Paint with peanut butter, cut characters, control your baked beans. Whatever you choose, at least you will have a delicious treat to enjoy at the end of your talented endeavor!

How to celebrate National Toast Day

There is no wrong way to enjoy a piece of toast - everyone has their own way of enjoying a piece of toast! While some people prefer lighter colored toast, others prefer darker pieces of toast - some even like toast that has started to blacken at the edges.

The degree of toasting is a very personal choice and causes some debate in families. While some people prefer a lighter colored piece of toast, others prefer a darker and crispier piece. A cup of tea is the same. While some people prefer a less brewed cup, others are adamant that a darker tea is a tastier tea.

How you like your toast is a very personal preference and up to you - and of course your toaster. (Some toasters are a lot fiercer than others!)

There was also the question of how to prepare the toast and what toppings to choose…

There is controversy regarding butter and whether butter should only be applied to 'naked' toast or under toast coating. Again, this is a very personal choice and not everyone agrees.

While some people choose to cover their toast with butter regardless of whether they will eat it 'naked' or topped, others believe that butter should be used only when eating toast on its own, or under a certain amount preset coating such as Marmite, or jam.

There is also the question of how much topping is too much topping. Again, here is another question that is pretty much there. There is no wrong way to enjoy a piece of toast - everyone has his or her own way of enjoying a piece of toast! While some people prefer lighter colored toast, others prefer darker pieces of toast - some even like toast that has started to blacken at the edges.

The degree of toasting is a very personal choice and causes some debate in families. While some people prefer a lighter colored piece of toast, others prefer a darker and crispier piece. The same goes for a cup of tea; while some people prefer a less brewed cup, others are adamant that a darker tea is a tastier tea.

There is also the question of how much topping is too much topping, which many people cannot agree. While some toast lovers love topping their toast with a generous serving of jam, Marmite, peanut butter, cream cheese - or whatever topping them up - others prefer to spread a thinner toppings on their toast.

How you enjoy your toast is really a personal preference. There is no right or wrong way to enjoy a slice of toast, it's all down to personal choice - and your taste buds of course!

The most common toppings can be divided into two categories: sweet and savory toppings.

For savory dishes, Marmite, peanut butter served with, for example Marmite or jam, cream cheese or butter by itself are popular choices.

For a sweet topping, accompanying options include jams, chocolate spreads - with Nutella being the favorite of many toast lovers - Fluff and Biscoff spreads. Many people cannot agree. While some toast lovers love topping their toast with a generous serving of jam, Marmite, peanut butter, cream cheese - or whatever topping them up - others prefer to spread a thinner toppings on their toast.

How you enjoy your toast is really a personal preference. There are many interesting way to enjoy a slice of toast. It is up to your choice and your taste buds of course!

The most common toppings can be divided into two categories: sweet and savory toppings.

For savory dishes, popular choices include Marmite, peanut butter (however, here are some concerns about whether peanut butter is sweet or savory - it clearly depends on what it's for.