Toast lovers, I have a modest proposal for you: Do not bother with bad bread. Say goodbye to sweet, cottony, lightweight toast, the kind that squishes under a butter knife or slumps under a blanket of jam.

Just get the good stuff instead, the best bread you’re able to buy, preferably handmade loaves with sturdy crusts and tender crumbs, imbued with the flavors of fermentation. It’s more expensive, and that’s no small thing. But unlike some other items for which you may pay more, good bread is worth a little extra.

Image Credit... Michael Kraus for The New York Times

Then always keep it on hand. I would argue that the best way to store bread isn’t to wrap it in foil, plastic or brown paper bags, sheath it in a pillowcase or stash it in the breadbox. The best way to keep bread is to put it into the freezer — sliced.