Mom's Toasts

Cheese Toast and Cantaloupe (Lizzy's Mom)

"Summers in South Louisiana are the kind of hot that requires twice daily showering. My Mom usually kept sliced summer melons in the fridge and in that heat, it's more satisfying than ice cream. For an afternoon snack, Mom would make something I consider to be a classic sweet and savory flavor combination: cheese toast and cantaloupe. I now realize it isn’t considered a classic by anyone but me.  So, this combination . . . you’re just gonna have to trust me. Nothing tastes like summer more than this. And, don’t get fancy with it, this isn't gonna be a prosciutto and melon situation. It's american cheese on top of brioche (or sourdough), broiled until it's browned and served alongside fresh chilled cantaloupe slices. My Mom doesn’t use a toaster, she uses the broiler in the oven, and this chef-y method lends itself to what is essentially an open faced grilled cheese.

Though Mom used regular white bread and American cheese, we recommend always gluten-free Super Bloom Brioche and vegan cheddar slices or shreds (I like either Follow Your Heart or Violife).

Just heat up your broiler, place a slice of cheese on a slice of bread, then broil it until the cheese melts and just starts to brown. Then, serve it with cantaloupe. It's sweet & savory, toasted & chilled, crunchy & juicy and just perfect. Trust me."- Lizzy

Cinnamon Toast (Iylla's Mom)

"This is probably a classic in most households...cinnamon toast -- It reminds me of my mom. The simplest ingredients and the easiest toast for me to make myself as a kid: toasted bread, butter, cinnamon and sugar. My mom would mix the cinnamon and sugar into a shaker to make it even easier to sprinkle on toasted bread. Even though I could make cinnamon toast myself as a kid it always tasted better when she made it for me. The warm bread and warm sugary cinnamon spice felt like a hug from my mom. I remade it for the first time in yeeears and it was a time-warp back to when my mom would make it (like that scene from Ratatouille) -- it still feels like a hug from her. 

I like a classic toasted gluten-free vegan Super Bloom Sourdough slice with Earth Balance vegan butter, cinnamon and sugar." - Iylla