Last week, I spied a bit of rabble-rousing on Twitter: criticism over a tartine recipe featured on a highly-popular lifestyle blog.
The sandwich in question is three ingredients—bread, hummus, tomato—and requires almost no methodology: Toast bread, spread hummus, lay down tomato slices, top with basil, salt, pepper. Maybe, given the ingredients, someone would figure out how to make it on her own.
It was a combination of the snack's simplicity in conjunction with the lack of comments on the blog pointing out that simplicity that drew some backlash. Tweets like...
the cult of this particular blogger is so strong that there is not a SINGLE comment saying "um, this is just hummus & tomato on toast"
and
Optimistically, I thought she would at least offer a recipe for homemade hummus... but not even?! What is this twilight zone
and
why didn't they break down "how to cut tomato" and "how to spread hummus" for those of us for whom three ingredients is TOO MANY!
Was it really the sandwich's straightforwardness that perturbed, or was it the claims—that this is a "recipe" for a "tartine"—that annoyed people? If it had been written as an idea or an outline (more like a Not(Recipe), let's say) would it have gone unnoticed? Must a combination of ingredients hit some undetermined marks of complexity and creativity to earn the title of "recipe"? And who determines those standards?
First, let's be fair to the blogger. It's not her recipe—it's republished, with permission, from a book that's intended for—and marketed as—time-saving strategies for stress-free cooking. Second, she writes explicitly that she's sharing the sandwich because it's her "on a normal day. Chickpeas. Target. Mom stuff." Neither the blogger nor the recipe writer make claims this open-faced sandwich is innovative.
The tomato sandwich flak reminded me of the feedback on Kenzi's avocado and egg tacos: Some readers were entertained by the idea that someone was getting paid to write about a meal that a 5-year-old could make; one said that it was "like reading an article by someone who thinks they invented toast."
All of this makes me wonder if there's a place for the everyday in cookbooks and food writing and lifestyle blogging. Why do some, like chefs who charge a premium for sliced figs, get to claim simplicity as purity while others are called out for silliness for putting a peak-season tomato on a hummus-smeared piece of bread?
Can a three-ingredient sandwich be called a recipe?
What's more snooty: to criticize someone for featuring a super simple, been-there-done-that "recipe" or to assume that the ingredient or flavor combination is well-known to everyone under the sun? How do you know when something is obvious to just you or to the world? And if the way the food is prepared or put together is inspiring or exciting or even day-brightening to one person, does it add value?
I do think it's important that there be enough self-awareness to know when a simple "recipe" (or idea, or outline) is not a revelatory invention (this blogger checks off that box)—and especially when it's existed elsewhere for decades, even centuries.
Still, there's room for both: for the wildly creative, the mind-bogglingly new, the fancifully inventive and for the everyday, the make-in-five-minutes, the feed-the-hungry-kids. Because while something might be old news to you, that might not be true for everyone; and, maybe seeing an easy-but-delicious combination gives a reader permission to play more in the kitchen—or permission to mix together something actually easy for dinner, to forgive herself for not being a capital C Cook all of the time, to find more delight and less solemnity in putting food on the table.
In that vein, here are some of our most basic (in a good way) recipes. Mock them as you see fit.
Does it annoy/offend/disturb you that a three-ingredient sandwich is a "tartine recipe"? Tell us in the comments below!
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Written by: Sarah Jampel
Popular on Food52
73 Comments
Sauertea
August 20, 2016
What we seek is inspirations. Many times the simplest things are the best. We step back and see new things! Not everything needs to be complicated and time consuming. Sometimes I just want to relax with a nice glass of wine and this sandwich would go well with a soft summer night
Maggie
August 17, 2016
I've seen one-ingredient ice cream posted as a recipe ... Sometimes it's just an idea or an inspiration, and sometimes people are overly critical.
Joan
August 15, 2016
Maybe, if I knew what a Tartine recipe was.
But like this comment, sometimes it's fun to be witty and write whatever snide thing comes into your head.
But like this comment, sometimes it's fun to be witty and write whatever snide thing comes into your head.
Joan
August 15, 2016
Maybe, if I knew what a Tartine recipe was.
But like this comment, sometimes it's fun to be witty and write whatever snide thing comes into your head.
But like this comment, sometimes it's fun to be witty and write whatever snide thing comes into your head.
Betty
August 15, 2016
I just wanted to add that I personally have no problem with simple recipes - I am frequently looking for new ideas, not for complicated recipes. Thanks for the interesting article.
Kay C.
August 14, 2016
Speaking of swapping out hummus for mayo, I did that last summer to make a hummus-egg salad. Hummus and hard boiled egg, whether you consider it a "recipe" or not, it sure was tasty, and seemed like a new idea to me.
lydia.sugarman
August 14, 2016
The original post is about a tomato sandwich using two slices of toasted bread, mayo, and tomato with salt and pepper. It must have been a "slow news day" to publish that in the first place. Really!
Where'd the hummus come in to the discussion? And, who decided to call it a 'tartine?' Food52 is a US-based business, so using the word 'tartine' becomes pretentious, too precious.
Yes, it's a recipe. Did it ever deserve to even be published? That's questionable.
I loved the original Food52. In recent years, it has, IMO, become too pretentious and precious. I've met both founders and they are lovely, down-to-earth women, but their "start-up" no longer fits that description. And, that I think is the real bone of contention in this debate.
Where'd the hummus come in to the discussion? And, who decided to call it a 'tartine?' Food52 is a US-based business, so using the word 'tartine' becomes pretentious, too precious.
Yes, it's a recipe. Did it ever deserve to even be published? That's questionable.
I loved the original Food52. In recent years, it has, IMO, become too pretentious and precious. I've met both founders and they are lovely, down-to-earth women, but their "start-up" no longer fits that description. And, that I think is the real bone of contention in this debate.
Radish
August 15, 2016
I personally disagree here with your questioning this as a recipe because only this summer my adultish grandchildren were served this and were in awe of a tomato sandwich. However, I do heartily agree with you on the controversy. This blog has changed and I told them so. Now I feel the food is less important than the products. Now it feels like it is written by and for young, adult New Yorkers.
Liebchen
September 13, 2016
The original recipe wasn't published on Food52, but was published on another blog, so the criticism of Food52 for calling something a "tartine" is misplaced (and that's why you can't find the hummus in the other tomato sandwich recipe linked above).
Susan R.
August 14, 2016
I feel that I'm adventurous with food & I like to try a lot of things. However I also appreciate the simple pleasures. Tomato, mayo & white bread is one of my favorite things. I have never in my life thought to swap the mayo for hummus on this sandwich. So for me, it's a bit of a revelation. 3 simple ingredients...yes a new TO ME recipe! In my opinion food blogging is like a journal of eating. We are just sharing what comes across our plate. If the snobs out there don't like that then they should do their own blogging & lets see if they have totally original ideas. To be honest I can't imagine that any "new" recipe out there hasn't already been tried by someone else. But eating its like traveling, you may be visiting places and foods known since the inception of time, but there is always something new for you to personally discover.
Teresa
August 14, 2016
Thank you. I for one had never tried this recipe. And in today's society where people get offended if you smile in their direction, I wouldn't even take a second to think about why. Self righteous unhappy people will always take the opportunity to hide behind their keyboard and be bullies! I for one like to change it up in the hot summer ( 114' here today) and enjoy a good tartine and a cold soup. So job well done and please keep them coming.
jccampb
August 14, 2016
tomato sandwich = fresh bread, + mayo + slices of Vidalia onion + sliced hierloom tomato grown in your own garden
end of statement.. as Firesign theater once said.... "a point in every direction, is the same as having no point at all'
end of statement.. as Firesign theater once said.... "a point in every direction, is the same as having no point at all'
Penny H.
August 14, 2016
I'm all for three ingredient recipes. There are way too many seventeen ingredient recipes floating around that no one has the time, energy or money to get all the ingredients, much less make the recipe.
carol S.
August 14, 2016
especially in august, when tomatoes are a sign of god's love for us...any way to eat them should be celebrated! we should be reminded of the possibles that exist with food, simple to complicated.
lissa R.
August 14, 2016
I think it's important to be reminded that eating well needn't cost much in time or money, to take advantage of a small sliver of time when a food is at it's best. I still see people in grocery stores picking up orange, rock hard tomatoes & peaches when the farmers market is a five minute drive away.
Favorite lunch in July & August - tomato, mayo on toast with a peach for dessert, juice running down my chin.
Favorite lunch in July & August - tomato, mayo on toast with a peach for dessert, juice running down my chin.
Jan
August 14, 2016
I enjoy simple "recipes" from time to time. Is it something that I could have figured out on my own? Maybe, but maybe not. And even if I had already figured it out, it is nice to be reminded of the idea as it may not have occurred to me lately. I don't have time during my routine life to sit and dwell upon what to make for most meals and I appreciate opening up an email and seeing a good, solid, simple idea that I can just run with. If people don't find the content of an email subscription to be worthwhile, then they should just unsubscribe.
Anja
August 14, 2016
I had to look up 'tartine', and learned it was an open-faced sandwich. Vocabulary enhancement, bonus!
When I discovered toast slathered with mayo covered with sliced tomato just picked from the garden, it was a revelation. I came up with it on my own, but if only someone had only told me how good it was earlier....
When I discovered toast slathered with mayo covered with sliced tomato just picked from the garden, it was a revelation. I came up with it on my own, but if only someone had only told me how good it was earlier....
jbrr
August 14, 2016
I don't mind this being called a 'recipe'. I don't follow recipes anyway. :) They're always more of 'suggestions' to me. And I find this far more appealing then those recipes that consist of opening 5 cans of goop, mixing them together and calling that 'cooking'.
Helen S.
August 14, 2016
While I agree with those that are amazed that this tomato sandwich is such a big deal and maybe a recipe and maybe not - oh! it is a tartine, , I find it even more interesting (amusing?) that anyone would go to such lengths to defend it. And please don't demean our intelligence by saying some people don't know how to make a sandwich. I agree with whoever said it is two piece of bread with something hopefully tasty in between. If they can figure out a smart phone or computer, they can make a fricking sandwich.
X
August 14, 2016
Thanks for saying exactly what I was thinking. You saved me the time of posting my own lengthy comment. I would like to say that I'm amazed that a tomato sandwich--excuse me--"tartine" (lol--spell check on my tablet won't even allow me to type the word, it changed it 3 times) can be so pretentious.
bonniedalyan
August 14, 2016
To me, there is nothing that can surpass the purity of a well made, peak of freshness tomato sandwich.......................
Bernette L.
August 14, 2016
I, for one, haven't "been there--done that. Kudos for simple recipes! Snobs need to be snobby about something. Might as well be a recipe. Keep those simple recipes coming, is what I say!
Joanne A.
August 14, 2016
I also agree with you - I love to cook, but with three kids I also love idea for very simple yet delicious combinations that I hadn't thought of yet. A "5 minute throw together and there is lunch" type of idea!
Deborah D.
August 14, 2016
I am in total agreement with you, there is room for both styles of recipes. Thanks for the list of simple dishes in the article too, I will be making at least 3 of them, especially the butter tomato sandwich since I picked up a bunch yesterday. Finally, I have developed a number of food allergies and now, the simpler the ingredients, the safer and better!
smartcat
August 14, 2016
A variation on the old tomato sandwich of my childhood is always welcome. Honestly I do wonder how people can get so hot under the collar over whether or not it's a recipe. There are far more important things in life.
Mary E.
August 14, 2016
Just chalk it up to haters-gotta-hate. I always appreciate new twists on old favorites! Like the grilled cheese!
Jona @.
August 12, 2016
Sometime we need simple stuff like this to find inspiration, and even though it might not be a simple recipe it does not mean that it shouldn't be shared.
Courtney C.
August 11, 2016
I love a simple recipe - there are days when you just need them. There is no need to get bent out of shape over a recipe. If you aren't interested, no one is forcing you to make it. Just move on to what you like and be happy.
Debbie D.
August 11, 2016
controversy about simple good ingredients, photographed beautifully to make your mouth water...what's the issue here. sometimes we forget less is more
Acj
August 11, 2016
Yes, it is annoying to outline an everyday snack with a list of ingredients and a method of assembly. It comes off as smug and know-it-allish when one could just as easily (heck, MORE easily) say, "I just looove me some fresh tomato and hummus Sammy!"
Julia C.
August 11, 2016
Somehow I've never thought of putting hummas on a sandwich until I saw that picture and my mouth started watering. Oh boy am I anticipating lunch! Thanks 😘
Tracey S.
August 10, 2016
As soon as I saw the photo of that tomato sandwich I was inspired to go home and make one myself. Thanks for the simple easy recipe. I had forgotten how good they are. 🍅
Gina D.
August 10, 2016
Some people just like to complain. I'm too tired at the end of the day to get worked up about stuff like this... And honestly I could use more simple recipes because I'm also too tired to cook.
Henry
August 10, 2016
I'm amazed to find that there are those who admit not being able to put a sandwich together. Where's the problem? ( 2 slices of bread with something, preferably tasty, between them). No "cooking" necessary. I'm also amazed that photo's are needed to reinforce just what a sandwich should look like. What a world.
702551
August 10, 2016
I'm always a bit bemused when people (bloggers, commenters) elevate this type of food into A Thing. This happens much more on US websites than elsewhere probably because large percentages of 2-3 generations have forgotten how to cook.
The concept of bread, a spread and (optionally) a topping has been around for centuries. Seems a bit silly to blog about tomato toast or avocado toast but since some people have never heard of such things or even imagined their possibilities, clearly these are valid topics for some fine parts of the World Wide Web.
The concept of bread, a spread and (optionally) a topping has been around for centuries. Seems a bit silly to blog about tomato toast or avocado toast but since some people have never heard of such things or even imagined their possibilities, clearly these are valid topics for some fine parts of the World Wide Web.
Nancy C.
August 10, 2016
Amazingly, (to those people!) not everyone knows how to cook or even how to put together a sandwich for themselves. So, whatever the reason that someone might post a "simple" but sophisticated recipe, it might actually help a first timer. For the rest of us, especially the busy ones, it is sometimes nice to be reminded of a combination of ingredients. Why are people so angry??
Baleen
August 10, 2016
Its not that I'm angry. It's more that I'm tired of blogs and websites that clog up my feed with such mediocre content. That kind of 'recipe' belongs on an ideas page or as a footnote to a real recipe. It demeans good food when you elevate such trivial crap because you want to use a buzzword (in this case tartine) or have a content deadline to meet.
cathy
August 10, 2016
I LOVE the simplicity of this "recipe". I follow food magazines, blogs, and social media as much for the ideas as I do for the recipes. While I love the complex ones now and then, I really love the simple ones that I know I have all the ingredients in my fridge right now and I only needed to be reminded to put them together!
Tina M.
August 10, 2016
Who cares how simple an idea is?
I happen to have "all" the ingredients and now I have a great lunch. I love tomato and mayonnaise sandwiches, but happy to have a more portable alternative. I think it's called "inspiration" ;)
I happen to have "all" the ingredients and now I have a great lunch. I love tomato and mayonnaise sandwiches, but happy to have a more portable alternative. I think it's called "inspiration" ;)
Radish
August 10, 2016
The only thing better would have been bread, tomato and mayo. The tomato has to be good though. I made these sandwiches for my adultish grandchildren and they thought I was a genius. Why not remind people of something simple, and totally tasty.
Silvia S.
August 10, 2016
While I don't in any way endorse the rude tone some of those commenters adopted, I will in all honesty admit that I often feel bloggers go to ridiculous lenghts to crank up their "recipe" count. Back when I blogged, I put out no more than 1-2 recipes per month, but they all required a fair amount of trial and error (not to mention the expense, since I chose not to accept sponsoring). I respect people who blog for money, but if I see them cranking out 300 recipes a year and then the recipes are "hummus tomato on toast" or "crumble some goat cheese on your salad" or "put a cucumber in your Martini", then I'm irked. An occasional post like that it's ok, it's fun and it has beautiful pics, but let's face it - a recipe, that one is not. To call it that I expect some thought got into it, expecially if it's a sponsored blog.
Panfusine
August 9, 2016
incidentally tomato sandwich was a delicious school lunch treat growing up, in Mumbai, soft white Brittania Bread slices slathered with salted butter, slices of the native tomatoes (red, smallish tart and not quite as juicy as a beefsteak), salt and pepper).
Panfusine
August 9, 2016
it is a true learning experience to savor these 'simple' recipes because it really teaches you to appreciate flavor. Indian cuisine tends to be complex in terms of even preparatory ingredients like Sambhar powder or garam masala that it does not come naturally to appreciate basic flavors, and anything equal to or simpler than a salad doesn't even qualify to be taught as a recipe in the home kitchen from mother to child. my revealing AAHA moment in terms of discovering flavor within my own native cuisine was via Marcella Hazan's tomato sauce, never did I pay so much attention to the flavor of a tomato left to cook down in its own juices.
Kathy T.
August 9, 2016
Not bothered or offended in the least. I'm an accomplished cook and baker, but my son is not. As a busy college student he sometimes needs to be reminded of how easy it is to feed himself delicious food and I share these quick and easy blog posts to him frequently. Everyone needs a break and everyone needs to start somewhere. Thanks for posting!
inpatskitchen
August 9, 2016
Just give me toast, homemade mayo, a beefy summer tomato and a little salt and I'm in heaven!!! It's not complicated....
Jody C.
August 9, 2016
So much agreement from this corner! I cook a lot, and recently I was so excited to read a "recipe" for an avocado/cucumber/scallion/mayo/lime/sriracha salad on Smitten Kitchen... Until I got to the comments. People! Lay off! The great thing about bloggers who post free recipes online is that they don't force you to read them or to make them!
Marit G.
August 9, 2016
There is a reason there is no copyright on a list of ingredients in a recipe, only on the How to! That is because anybody can mix bread, hummus and tomato and nobody can say: Hey, I own that!
Baleen
August 9, 2016
To compare a tomato and hommus sandwich to Marcella Hazan's tomato sauce is a ridiculous way for you to try and justify a crappy "filler" post. You might try for quality over quantity posting next time.
Dana R.
August 9, 2016
I absolutely appreciate every one of those "recipes" for their simplicity, ease, and affordability... Except for the trail mix. I'll just buy that at the store 😋
pattiB
August 9, 2016
It's elitist and non-inclusional to mock a 3 ingredient recipe. There are plenty of people who don't cook AT ALL, and to have a simple recipe for a good sandwich (said folks might not have ever considered replacing mayo with hummus) might open the door to the possibility of other combinations and maybe even turning on the stove!
Don't forger - Marcella Hazen's famous sauce has 3 ingredients...
Don't forger - Marcella Hazen's famous sauce has 3 ingredients...
Nicole C.
August 9, 2016
Well I've never made a tomato sandwich and now I'm going to. That sounds delicious.
Laura
August 9, 2016
Maybe t's not a recipe. But personally I love to know what other people are eating. It gives me inspiration. And the fact that I'd never eaten a tomato sandwich until I was well into my 20s, says that there are people out there that might benefit from the "recipe" after all.
M
August 9, 2016
The backlash against a tomato sandwich recipe is silly. * If it's a simple-stupid suggestion to you, move on and let the person it appeals to delight in the discovery. Beyond that..
Aren't recipes, at their most basic or complex, methods of merging flavours and ingredients in tasty ways? We look at recipes for appealing ways to merge things to delicious ends, rather than spending countless hours and dollars trial-and-erroring our way through cooking. Sometimes it's a complex mixture. Sometimes it's a simple combination that we never would have considered. I have discovered many simple combinations by friends and family, and online recipes is just a textual version of that.
Besides, I don't think the combination of bread and tomato gets enough love. There's a beautiful simplicity to it, cultural traditions (French tomato tarts, Swedish breakfast spreads), and for some of us, particular early foodie memories. So, long live tomato sandwiches!
*(Though I wonder if it's more about labeling it as a "tartine," and the stigma unnecessarily attached to French words. That is, the assumption that a recipe that uses a French word is fancy, even if the definition of the word and the recipe are anything but, like egg cocottes.)
Aren't recipes, at their most basic or complex, methods of merging flavours and ingredients in tasty ways? We look at recipes for appealing ways to merge things to delicious ends, rather than spending countless hours and dollars trial-and-erroring our way through cooking. Sometimes it's a complex mixture. Sometimes it's a simple combination that we never would have considered. I have discovered many simple combinations by friends and family, and online recipes is just a textual version of that.
Besides, I don't think the combination of bread and tomato gets enough love. There's a beautiful simplicity to it, cultural traditions (French tomato tarts, Swedish breakfast spreads), and for some of us, particular early foodie memories. So, long live tomato sandwiches!
*(Though I wonder if it's more about labeling it as a "tartine," and the stigma unnecessarily attached to French words. That is, the assumption that a recipe that uses a French word is fancy, even if the definition of the word and the recipe are anything but, like egg cocottes.)
tlg
August 9, 2016
Well the 'recipe' I prefer: peeled tomato, bread (untoasted), mayo, salt & pepper - perfect.
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