Our 48th slice of toast - Pesto

First things first, the pesto jar had a great pop! Unlike the disappointing salsa! Don’t you agree that the pop of a new jar is always very satisfying?!

Tom, I thought loved pesto… I took this assumption by the unbelievably thick layer he applied to his. I opted for the more sparse approach on my slice, being as sparing as possible. I went on to learn that we both agreed on this topping. It was very strong; almost over powering. I am not sure if pesto belongs on toast. I don’t think either of us will have it again… (unless it pops again further down the list!)

Our 47th slice of toast - Maple walnut raisin cream cheese

You should have seen the mess I created in trying to make this topping. It was a last minute thing as I had forgotten to make this topping for a number of days.

The topping consisted of cream cheese (The Aldi kind of course), walnuts and raisins, a little bit of water, brown sugar and maple syrup. It should have been maple flavour extract but I think the syrup worked well. I threw it all in to a bowl and used a hand held blender to mix the concoction….. This did not go well! I quite literally had walnuts and raisins flying everywhere, making a complete mess of the kitchen first thing in the morning. I quickly legged it before my mum saw the mess!

The topping was quite nice, Tom even went so far as to say delicious, he did say however there were too many raisins… (So in the end it was quite lucky that most flew out in the mixing stage). We both thoroughly enjoyed our toast as we were looked at in envy by others round our table!

Maple Walnut Raisin Cream Cheese

(4 servings)

• 8 oz cream cheese -- softened
• 2 teaspoons walnuts -- chopped into coarse pieces
• 2 teaspoons raisins -- finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon water
• 3 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon maple-flavour extract
• 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

A food processor is a big help with this recipe, but you can do it by hand.

Whip cream cheese until smooth. While continuing to whip, slowly add all of the remaining ingredients.

Cover and chill until firm (at least an hour or two).

Spread this on your bagels or toast for a great morning treat. The spread stores well in the refrigerator for about a week.

Huzzah!

Our 46th slice of toast - Plain, with a good old cup o' tea

Simple yet effective.

I am glad we didn’t have to dip our toast in the tea like the coffee in topping 17. As both Tom and I are great Yorkshire Tea Gold fans, I think dipping toast in tea would have ruined a great brew. (We did however dip some chocy biccies)

Buttered seeded wholemeal bread was a nice break from the weird and the wonderful toppings we have experienced recently and it went down rather quickly.

Our 45th slice of toast - Orange rind

Orange rind on toast was a welcome addition to our toast topping challenge. Poor Tom was suffering from a cold… And I have a lot of respect for him, he did not whinge like the regular male in his situation and he did not contract the dreaded “Man Flu”. However the vitamin C rich topping came at a great time to help with his recovery process. After finishing the toast he enjoyed the rest of the orange. =]

Orange on toast was a weird combination, even with the addition of sugar we both found it quite bitter. I think we went a bit overboard on the application of the rind. The after taste however was a pleasant one. Tom has spoke previously about wearing facemasks after such toppings as smoked salmon and garlic. Having orangey breath was a nice change for once.

I have to say I don’t think I would have it again; I’d rather eat the toast and orange separately!