Melba Toast Recipe | Cooking with Nana Ling

By Editor On Nov 28, 2023

The simple and crunchy bread-based snack that can be enjoyed with a variety of toppings.

Melba Toast is a snack that’s incredibly easy to make. You can enjoy it in all its rustic simplicity or transform it into something a bit fancy.

Magnificent Melba Toast

Perhaps the BEST thing about Melba Toast is that it can be made from just day-old or stale bread and some butter or oil.

That’s right, you’re extending the life of bread that may otherwise land in the bin!

As I mentioned above it’s also extremely versatile – this crunchy cracker-style bread can be enjoyed with dips, pate, cheese, cold meats or just a little butter or honey.

Another great thing about Melba Toast is you can recount the interesting story of its origins when you’re sitting with friends enjoying a glass of bubbly with pate and Melba Toast.

Melba Toast: the Australian connection

In 1897, Australian opera singer Dame Nellie Melba was staying at London’s Savoy Hotel. Feeling ill, she was offered “Toast Marie” which had been invented by the hotel’s chef, Auguste Escoffier.

The dry and crunchy bread-based snack helped her recover from her illness – and the toast was renamed in her honour.

Today, she’s still remembered thanks to this recipe along with her appearance on our $100 note.

Ingredients for Melba Toast

The ingredients you’ll need are:

french stick or baguette (30cm long)
6 tablespoons melted butter or olive oil.

That’s right. This is a 2-ingredient recipe!

The ingredient measurements can be found in the recipe card at the end of this post.

How to make Melba Toast

Pre-heat your oven to 180 degrees celsius / 355 degrees fahrenheit.

Slice the bread into 0.5-1cm thick slices, depending on your preferences.

Place the bread pieces onto a baking tray and brush each piece with melted butter or oil.

Place into the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.

Remove trays from the oven and place onto a cooling rack. Once cooled completely, place into an airtight container.

Making Melba Toast in days gone by

I love this little glimpse into how we made and enjoyed Melba Toast back in 1945 and 1951.

melba toast recipes from newspaper clippings

Serving ideas

For parties, Melba Toast is perfect paired with:

If you love the recipe, please leave a rating or comment below. Thanks! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Storing

Store Melba Toast in an airtight container for up to a couple of weeks.

french stick or baguette (30cm long)
6 tablespoons melted butter or olive oil

Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees celsius / 355 degrees fahrenheit.
Slice bread into 0.5-1cm thick slices.
Place bread pieces onto a baking tray and brush each piece with melted butter or oil.
Place into oven and bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove from oven and place onto a cooling rack. Once cool, place into an airtight container.

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