TOAD IN A HOLE

On a recent jaunt in November, I came across a large toad.  My puppy has never met a toad and instantly nuzzled it.  Under normal circumstances, a toad would hobble away.  On this cold day, the toad just remained stuck in place.  Apparently, this toad did not receive the memo that it is time to hibernate.  If he had, he would dig a burrow below the freeze line, crawl in and sleep off the winter cold.  They don’t freeze to death because of a naturally occurring antifreeze.  So, when water in the cells of the body freeze, the water forms crystals.  These would damage the cells, resulting in death.  Toads get past this by having a high concentration of glucose (sugar) in the blood that prevents freezing.  Cool huh?  So in honor of what the toads should be doing… I give you a recipe!

Toad in a hole

For each serving you will need one piece of bread, one egg, and as much butter as your conscious will allow.  Heat a frying pan to medium high (only sissies cook on low) and add butter.  Use a knife to cut a hole from the center of the bread.  Remove the circular piece, leaving behind a hole about the size of an egg.  Place your holey bread in the frying pan (add the circular piece too because it is yummy).  Crack an egg and add it to the hole in the bread.  Watch your egg and when the white has cooked, use a spatula to flip the toast/egg.  Cook on the other side until you are happy with your egg condition.  Remove from heat.  You now have a toad in a hole.  Enjoy!