Josephine, the Melba Machine
Josephine, the Melba Machine
Mom records her winning melba toast recipe--sesame, herb, and cheese.
Trading the 5 year old for the 92 year old was not quite an even match, but there is one common denominator for both--food. Mom is as food-centric as Lilah and our days revolve around breakfast, lunch, and dinner. In a way, food and the preparation of it has been a saving grace for Mom, who is likely to doze off when she is not actively engaged. And all her years of food service come into play to keep her awake.
When we have visitors coming, she makes Stouffer's Melba Toast. Crack, John calls it, who can't resist the siren call of the crispy, buttery little toasts.
I set her up at the kitchen table after she washes her hands with a tray of thin-sliced bread cut in half and she goes to town on the three varieties--herb, sesame, and cheese. Always all three, though cheese is most popular.
It's her art and her craft--and a way for her to win friends, like when she took a basket of it to our neighbor's, the Gilligans, Memorial Day party. After all, who doesn't like bread & butter?
She can even make melba with her eyes closed!
Melba Toast
The recipe originated at Stouffer’s, where baskets of Melba Toast were on the table as part of the upscale service in the Gaslight dining room at Stouffer’s in Jenkintown. Mom worked there as a “Stouffer Girl” in the 1960’s, moving into a management position and transferring to the Penn Center store downtown across the street from Love Plaza.
One loaf of Pepperidge Farm thin-sliced bread will need one stick of butter, softened to room temperature before mixing in the herbs or sesame seeds. Use it plain before coating with dry Parmesan cheese placed in a cake pan.
Ingredients for a large batch (@180 half slice pieces)
3 loaves Pepperidge Farm Thin sliced bread, cut in half
Cheese Melba
1 stick of softened salted butter
½ cup grated Parmesan
Sesame Melba
1 stick softened salted butter
¼ cup unhulled sesame seeds
Herb Melba
1 stick softened salted butter
2 tablespoons Melba Herbs mix (or substitute Herbes de Provence or your own blend)
¼ dried marjoram
¼ teaspoon dried tarragon
¾ teaspoon dried parsley
¾ teaspoon dried basil
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Have 2 large baking trays ready and place all three loaves of bread on another tray, with the slices cut in half. Prepare the 3 separate bowls of butter, mashing the herbs and sesame seeds and whipping the butter so it spreads more easily. Whip up the plain butter and place the cheese in a cake pan.
Spread ½ teaspoon of butter on each half slice of bread, filling the pan. Bake for 12-15 minutes in a preheated oven and place the tray on a cooling rack when done. Let the toast cool and store in a tightly closed container.