Marmalade on toast sparks U.K. debate

LONDON, March 11 (UPI) -- A British researcher who says he spent considerable time, energy and thought on the problem has concluded spreading marmalade thick on warm toast is wrong.

Christopher Smith, co-director of the Manchester Food Research Center and professor at Chester University, insists the toast -- always white -- should be cooled for 10 minutes in a well-ventilated room after being heated for 1 minute at 428 degrees Fahrenheit, The Daily Telegraph reported Friday.

The toast should then be spread with 0.25 ounces of lightly salted butter, and then -- finally -- 0.39 ounces of fine-cut marmalade should be administered evenly.

Smith's rigorous research has left some food experts baffled.

Food writer Rose Prince said: "I simply do not get the cold toast preference. The mix of tart but sweet orange jelly and melting butter on toast is one of the happiest unions in the history of breakfast, and there's a high fragrance factor when the toast is warm."

Susie Kensett, who runs Susie's Preserves, said, "If you are quick enough to get the butter and then the marmalade on the toast so that it is still warm when you eat it, so much the better.

"I suppose, however, we should celebrate the fact that academics think marmalade is worthy of serious study."