oast, in one form or another, has become even more of a comfort than usual. Lavishly buttered or glistening with olive oil, of course, but oh so much more than that. Toast tucked under a pile of pak choi or spinach that you have sautéed with olive oil, lemon juice, dried chilli flakes and pepper. Toast to sneak under a mound of mushrooms fried in butter and thyme. And, using up the weekend roast, toast to cushion a sauce made with leftover chicken, browned onions, sage and cream. Best of all was a blue cheese sauce, properly made with bay-infused milk into which I folded steamed spinach and fat butter beans from a tin. Toast has been a lockdown go-to partly for its ability to make a light dish more substantial. The trusty crust that sits under a piece of grilled lamb belly or roasted red peppers and soaks up their garlicky, herby juices. The thickly cut chewy bread that lends heft to a light lunch of taglierini, basil and crushed tomatoes, or acts as a delicious raft on which to sit a vast, wobbling spoonful of parmesan soufflé. This is “bought bread” of course, not being able to get my hands on enough flour to knock up a loaf of my own. I managed to get a panettone, too – and thank goodness that this vanilla-scented cake has become available year-round. As good as the soft, fruit-flecked dough can be, I do prefer it toasted, especially when I have sandwiched two thin slices together with apricot jam or some skinny matchsticks of dark chocolate. As the cake toasts on the griddle, the filling melts and oozes from the edges. A jug of cream wouldn’t go amiss, or even a scoop of lightly melting ice-cream. Creamed butter beans and spinach on toast Enough for 3 onions 2, medium olive oil 2 tbsp butter 30g spinach 200g milk 500ml black peppercorns 6 bay leaves 2 plain flour 45g blue cheese 100g, such as Shropshire Blue, Stichelton, etc butter beans 1 x 400g tin toast 6 slices For the pickled onions: red onion ½ white wine vinegar 100ml water 50ml black peppercorns 8 salt 1 tsp caster sugar 1 tsp Start with the pickled onion. Peel and thinly slice the red onion and put it in a non-reactive saucepan with the vinegar, water, whole peppercorns, salt and sugar. Bring to the boil, check that the sugar has dissolved, then remove from the heat and set aside. Over the next half hour or so, the onion will become softer and less pungent, but retain a little of its original crispness. Peel and roughly chop the 2 onions, then put them into a deep saucepan with the olive oil and butter and place over a low to moderate heat. Let the onions cook, with the occasional stir, for a good 15-20 minutes until deep gold and translucent. Wash the spinach and remove any tough stalks. Put the still-wet leaves into a saucepan, place over a high heat and cover tightly with a lid. Leave the spinach to cook for a couple of minutes in its own steam, turn once or twice with tongs, then remove from the heat when the leaves are deep green and wilted. Tip into a colander and rinse under cold water, then squeeze out most of the water with your hands. Bring the milk, whole peppercorns and bay leaves to the boil in a small, deep saucepan, then set aside to infuse. Stir the flour into the softened onions, continue cooking for a minute or two, then stir in the milk, a ladle at a time, discarding the aromatics as you go. Stir the sauce to remove any lumps, then leave to simmer over a low heat for 10 minutes, continuing to stir from time to time. Crumble the cheese into the sauce, taste, then add ground black pepper to taste. Rinse the butter beans and add them to the sauce, then stir in the spinach. Place the slices of toast on a baking sheet and set the oven grill to high. Divide the beans between the slices of toast, then leave under the grill until patchily golden. Top with red onion slices, lifted from the pickle, and eat immediately. Chocolate panettone sandwich The panettone browns quickly so keep the heat low in order to give the chocolate time to melt. Press the top half on firmly to keep the chocolate in place. Turning the sandwich on the griddle gets easier after the first attempt. I use two palette knives, one under the sandwich, the other holding the top in place. It takes a little practice. A little sharp fruit jam, such as morello cherry or apricot, is rather good here, as would be a little bowl of very softly whipped cream. Enough for 3 panettone 6 thin slices, less than 40g each dark chocolate 80g icing sugar a little Cut each panettone slice in half. Cut the chocolate into short, thin shards, about the thickness of a match and scatter them thickly over one half of each slice. Place the second half on top to make a small sandwich and press firmly down. Place a ridged griddle pan or heavy-based frying pan over a low to moderate heat. Lower the sandwiches on to the surface and, keeping the heat low, leave to toast for a minute or two until the chocolate has melted. Watch carefully, as this really doesn’t take very long. Slide a palette knife under the sandwich and, holding the top piece in place, quickly turn to lightly brown the other side. Toast for a further minute or 2, dust very lightly with icing sugar and serve. Follow Nigel on Twitter @NigelSlater