Welsh cuisine roasted cheese led to the dish of Welsh rarebit, or Welsh rabbit, seasoned melted cheese poured over toasted bread. The cheese would need to be a harder one, such as cheddar or similar. Referred to as Welsh rabbit as early as 1725, the name is not similar to the Welsh term "caws pobi". Welsh folk rarely ate rabbit due to the cost and as land owners would not allow rabbit hunting, so the term is more likely a slur on the Welsh. The name evolved from rabbit to rarebit, possibly to remove the slur from Welsh cuisine or due to
Elizabeth David range of subjects; she abominated the word "crispy", demanding to know what it conveyed that "crisp" did not; she confessed to an inability to refill anybody's wineglass until it was empty; she insisted on the traditional form "Welsh rabbit" rather than the modern invention "Welsh rarebit"; she poured scorn on the "Guide Michelin's" standards; she deplored "fussy garnish ... distract[ing] from the main flavours"; she inveighed against the "ersatz": "anyone depraved enough to invent a dish consisting of a wedge of steam-heated bread spread with tomato paste and a piece of synthetic Cheddar can call it a pizza." While running