A depression era comfort food people relied on. Soft, simple, and surprisingly soothing

There are lots of small tweaks you can make to milk toast depending on your mood and what you have on hand. For extra richness, use half-and-half instead of milk, or stir in a teaspoon of heavy cream at the end. If you’re trying to keep things lighter or dairy-free, use oat milk or almond milk and a plant-based butter; just note that sweeter milks may need less added sugar. To lean into breakfast territory, top the finished milk toast with sliced bananas, berries, or a spoonful of applesauce. For a more nostalgic, dessert-like version, use brioche or challah, bump up the vanilla, and add a bigger pinch of cinnamon or even a sprinkle of brown sugar on top. You can also go savory: skip the sugar and vanilla, use just a pinch of salt and pepper in the warm milk, and serve the toast with a soft-boiled egg on top—almost like a super simple, deconstructed creamy toast. If you’re cooking for more than one person on a busy morning, you can easily scale this recipe up by warming a larger batch of milk in one saucepan and toasting multiple slices of bread at once, then assembling each plate to order.