Beans on toast is surely a staple of most diets at some stage, but with the addition of cheese, this favourite is elevated to a whole new level. Who can resist the tried and tested combination of the rich tomato sauce from the baked beans and the creamy molten cheese blended together in a warming and moorish tasty snack. This comforting, scrumptious treat transports you back to happy childhood days of simple pleasures without a care in the world for diet, or "nutritional" correctness in everything you eat.
This deep-filled sealed baked beans and cheese toastie is surely still one of the easiest ways to create the perfect go to snack or supper time treat that delivers every time!
For more information on weights, measures and simple conversions in both metric, imperial (and US) read ... DO SPOONS, MILLILITRES AND CUPS ACTUALLY MEASURE UP?
Baked Beans & Cheese In Toastie
As with most toasties, the type of cheese you use can very much depend on your particular favourite or go to cheese. Mine is always an extra mature cheddar, as I simply love the rich, deep flavour it brings to any sandwich and cheddar always toasts well. In fact I always have a resealable bag of ready grated mature or extra mature cheddar in my fridge so that I am "ready" for whenever the mood takes me (and grated because I am lazy, and hate grating!).
You can of course opt to use any cheese you like. Even if you stick with cheddar, there are mild and medium versions for a lighter taste, or even mozzarella to give your toastie that elasticated cheese feel. As the baked beans in their rich tomato sauce are the star of this sandwich, it doesn't matter what cheese you use. It could simply be whatever you have left in your fridge that needs using up, as nearly any variety would be fine, crumbled into this toastie.
What you will need for the perfect Baked Beans & Cheese Toastie
I always use thick sliced bread, for me, the thicker the better. My preference is for white sliced, but a 50/50 white/wholemeal combination would work just as well. As there are literally only 3 main components to this sandwich (they are in the title) the toast becomes an integral part itself, and not merely just the slices that the filling goes between. Therefore "super toastie" or "extra thick" sliced loaves are the ones to go for.
For this recipe I have used an extra thick toastie white sliced loaf.
I tend to find that baked beans are purely down to personal choice. There are the obvious well-known brands, some of which you have always bought and are happy with the quality. However, many of the supermarket "own-brands" can be of similar quality and will provide just as good a toastie as the others. Having said this, I would not necessarily recommend the supermarket "basics" brands. They are often considerably cheaper but can sometimes have quite a watery sauce, which would be more likely to leak onto the plates and burn.
The cheese I have chosen to compliment the baked beans for this toastie is a mature grated cheddar. I simply prefer my cheese to have a good depth of flavour, but you could literally choose any type of cheddar or whatever you have in your fridge. As I am always "unready" and also, I hate grating, I find it much simpler to buy the cheese ready grated from my local supermarket. I always have at least 2 or 3 bags of different kinds of cheeses in my fridge so I'm always ready for that craving for sandwich or snack. These are usually supplied in resealable bags so you can just use the amount you want and keep the rest for later (up to 5 days so no need for waste).
Although I said this was a simple three ingredient snack, my personal preference is to add a little seasoning in the form of a pinch of ground black pepper to enhance the flavour.
The Recipe
The Baked Beans and Cheese Toastie
EQUIPMENT
- 3-in-1 snack maker with sealed toastie plates
PREPARATION TIME : 5 minutes
COOKING TIME : 6 minutes (approx.)
SERVINGS : 2
INGREDIENTS
- 4 slices extra thick toastie white bread
- 15g butter or similar
- 200g baked beans in tomato sauce
- 40g grated mature cheddar cheese
- pinch of ground black pepper
STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS
- Turn on the snack maker
- While the appliance is heating up gather all the ingredients to hand.
- Butter one side of each of the 4 slices of bread
- When ready, place 2 slices butter side down on bottom plate
- Form a recess with the back of a spoon in the shape of the plate (be careful as the plate is hot)
- Spoon equal amounts of the baked beans into the recesses formed.
- Place equal amounts of the grated cheese over each portion of beans
- Sprinkle a pinch of ground black pepper over the cheese
- Place the remaing 2 slices of bread on top with the buttered side uppermost
- Close the top plate and click the handles to lock in place
- Cook for approximately 6 minutes or until golden
Making the perfect toastie
I prefer to place the bottom slices of bread onto the bottom plate when ready to create a recess for the fillings. However, you will need to work quickly while building the rest of your toastie as the buttered bottom slice will start cooking immediately and the top slice will only start to cook when the lid is closed.
You can of course assemble the whole thing first and then lift into place. Either way, be aware that the plates are very hot.
Once your toastie is cooked switch off the appliance at the socket. NEVER lift your finished toastie out with your fingers. The plates will still be extremely hot! Always use wood or plastic tools. I use a plastic fish slice and the toastie comes away from the non-stick surface easily.
Don't worry too much about excess cheese leaking out as shown in the picture below. This can be due to overfilling or as in this case because the slices of bread were not quite wide enough to extend beyond the recess. The leaked melted cheese tastes great and when cooled, I just pull it off and eat on it's own. Treat it as a bonus, not a problem. 😀
Or you could try...
If you wanted to spice things up a bit, you could try putting a couple of drops of tabasco sauce in each section of the beans before adding the cheese. However, don't go overboard with the tabasco as you want to taste the baked beans and the cheese and not just a fiery burning sensation with every bite.
For a more subtle variation, try a level teaspoon of American mustard (the mild type that you would use in hot dogs, etc.) spread over the inner surface of the top slice of bread to add another complimentary rich layer of flavour to this delicious combination.
Perfect with...
The Baked Beans and Cheese Toastie is perfect on it's own as a snack at any time of day, whenever the fancy takes you.
Or simply add some fresh baby salad leaves with a light dressing, to create a quick tasty lunch for two.
How does your sandwich maker compare?
For most of the recipes shared here I use my trusty Tower Deep Fill 3-in-1 Sandwich Maker, so obviously you may need to adjust your ingredients slightly if you are using a different appliance. Having said that, most sandwich makers are very similar in design and size, and the amount of each filling is a guide only and you can increase or decrease, add or subtract, according to your personal taste.
Never be afraid to experiment, and remember you won't always get the perfect result first time, so if at first you don't succeed try, try and try again. It's great fun!
If you want to check out some of the alternative 3-in-1 machines available check out our guide...
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