The Trouble with Toast Racks

I've long loved the idea of elevating toast to a main event by displaying it in a pretty little stand designed and created for nothing other than carrying and holding toasted bread.

I've been wanting and searching for one to call my own for a long time now. But, for some reason they are very expensive (by my standards) even when they're just silver plated.

At long last, I found an old silver plated and seriously tarnished toast rack priced just right for me - "a quid".

On it's maiden voyage to our Sunday breakfast table it became the main topic of discussion.

Both Drew and Matt were thrilled when they saw the set-up. They'd never seen or heard of a toast rack before, but thought it a genius concept.

However, in mere seconds we all discovered a few flaws in the toast rack design. First off, our "medium sliced" bread was a tad wide for the rack. It took some effort to get it out.

Matt began questioning the true purpose of the stand. He thought it better suited for mail. And while I knew they are sometimes used to hold letters these days, their intended purpose is for toast.

Then I noticed something else, which was more important to me.  It left a lot of crumbs scattered about.

This got me to thinking an I too had questions formulating about this "toast rack. Why was it invented? Are there toast rack standards?Are all toast racks created equal? So I Googled it--as you do.

I learned that these racks serve a very important purpose--by standing the toast up air circulates between the pieces preventing condensation which can make your toast soggy. And, obviously the little handle makes it easy to pass around the table.

the Cadillac of toast racks

They are still being produced out of all types of materials and you see them in all the shops over here. AND some of them come with a little tray to catch a crumbs.

So now with a little experience and a few conversations under my belt I have some advice for you.

1. If you're shopping for a toast rack, get one with an accompanying tray. 
2. If you prefer your toasted bread with melted butter be sure to butter it before cooling in the rack. 
3. Buy a thinner sliced bread when using a toast rack. 
4. When not in use, show your toast rack a little love by using it to organize mail.