A Crisp Sandwich - Yes Please!

Crisp Sandwich Shop Sells Out in TWO Hours

So the crisp sandwich restaurant which opened Monday was a complete sell out in the first two hours.

Is it only me, or is anyone else not surprised by this?

In my opinion, crisp sarnies are the very best thing since, well sliced bread.  Thank goodness for John Montague, the 4th Earl of Sandwich (13 Nov. 1718 - 30 Apr. 1792) for his most fabulous invention way back in the 1700’s [Wikipedia].

Growing up, it didn’t matter what we had for tea, if there was bread you made yourself a sandwich from the bit of food you had left especially.  I think this was a requirement of British childhood.  It was the only thing to do whether you were eating fish fingers, chips and peas (a favourite in our house), egg and chips or even spaghetti Bolognese (when it was a fancy day) – they all went in between two slices of bread and butter.  Mashed potato and gravy was also a favourite of mine and who, tell me, has never had a chip butty?

But the crisp sandwich has got to be up there in the top ten.  Here’s mine (but not necessarily in top ten order)

Ham and Marmite – Back in the day, I used to sell programmes on a Saturday at Chelsea Football Club and had to be there early so wouldn’t get time for lunch.  Every week, without fail, I would pack myself a ham and Marmite and a mini pork pie.  Whenever I eat one now (minus the pork pie, of course as I can’t get them here) it takes me right back to Victoria Tube Station – ‘cos I could never wait until lunch time.

Needs a bit of ham (and a pork pie)

Fried Egg – My aunt was famous for her doorstep fried egg sandwiches.  I used to love going to see her as she would always ask if we wanted one.  Very, very thick freshly sliced bread and a lovely runny egg yolk.

Doorstep Fish Fingers - but imagine it with a runny egg!!

Chips – The ubiquitous chip butty.  Slathered with tomato sauce and lashings of vinegar.  Made even better if you have some fried egg to dip it in.

Crisps -  If you need a snack which is a little more than a bag of crisps, out comes the bread.  It doesn’t really matter what flavor, but ready salted and cheese and onion are my go-to’s.

Sausages – More than likely this would be for breakfast, with loads of tomato sauce.  Yum!  (Wish I could get some Wall’s Prime Porkie Workies here)

Bacon – Again for breakfast.  The only problem living in America is that the bacon is bloody awful. When it’s cooked right, it’s hard and crispy – basically overcook streaky bacon.  Not too good for a sandwich, if you ask me.  Although tomato sauce does a lot to disguise this fact.

Piccalilli on Toast – Although not a sandwich, I love this.  I first got the idea years ago when a cousin of mine was pregnant and this was one of her cravings.  I don’t know about her, but I’ve been eating it ever since.  The same goes for tomato sauce on toast.  Yum!

Possibly a bit too much Piccalilli

Paté and Pickled Onions – This is also something I liked to eat on toast.  I remember I would come home from school and be starving and as my mum was usually still at work, secretly I had the run of the fridge and larder.  I had to be careful what I would eat so I wasn’t found out. One day, this combination just happened and it was the most wonderful thing ever.  It’s funny how we always had paté in the fridge, you hardly ever see it here.  Oh and I hope my mum’s not reading this and has just found out what happened to all the pickled onions.

Needs pickled onions

Cheese and Tomato – I’m not really a cheese kind of person, but there is one time that really sticks out in my memory.  We were at the seaside and we went to a small café to have a cuppa and a sandwich.  My mum chose cheese and tomato and that particular sandwich had been sitting wrapped in clingfilm for quite a while.  The tomato was warm and had bled into the cheese, which was slightly soggy and the whole thing had a mild plasticky taste – and it was wonderful.  Needless to say, this is the only way I will each cheese sandwiches now.  My sandwich has to be left out for a while to get to room temperature..  In fact, if I’m having one, I will always make it ahead of time so it’s warmed up a bit. I know, it sounds absolutely terrible, but I’m a bit weird, I think.  *Smiles*

Now my taste buds are tingling and my mouth is watering looking at all these lovely sandwiches - and there’s nothing I wouldn’t do right now for a pork pie!  Oh how I miss those gorgeous little packets of meaty goodness!

What’s your favourite sandwich and how weird do you get?

Marmite - Love It (or hate it)

Marmite, as the tag line goes, you either love it or hate it.  Well, I bloody love it!!

In fact, I love it so much I have a Saturday morning ritual of a bit of a lay in, while watching Eastenders and having a few slices of Marmite on toast and a cup of tea.  Every. Blooming. Week!!  Heaven.  It’s my one morning of total Englishness.

I rely on family visiting from Blighty to supply me with my Marmite rations.  You can buy it here in the US, but it is extremely expensive and you can’t get the mahoosive jar, only the small ones.  So obviously, when I was back in England last month I found the biggest jar I could to bring back with me.   Yes – 500g of lovely, yeasty goodness.

Who wants the weenie one?  Much too small

That was all very well and good until I started to pack my suitcase to come back.  How do you fit all the clothes your brought with you, the souvenirs you're taking back, 7 Double Decker bars, 10 Curlywurlys, 5 Fudge bars, 12 penguins (not the bird), a packet of Club bars, 2 packs of choccie bickies, Chewits, two six packs of Crisps, a jar of Picallilli, various other food items which you just cannot live without - AND your massive Marmite - in your case.  Well, that was a problem and I made a terrible, terrible (in hindsight) decision to put my Marmite in my carry on luggage.  *sad face*

No sooner had I got to security at Heathrow and put my bag through the scanner thingy than the bells went off.  This huge wailing sound as my case was unceremoniously pushed to one side and I was asked to step around… Oh dear, I’m British you know, please, please don’t single me out, especially in front of strangers.  Oh the horror, oh the embarrassment.  But, that was nothing compared to what happened next.

Oh no, not content to point me out to about 1000 people, (it was probably more like 50, but felt like 1000) I was then made to undo my bag (which was pretty much packed to the gills with more food items) and I had to watch in utter despair as every single item was taken out, held up as if he was showing it to the crowd, and then put back down again.  But then he got to my Marmite.  I saw his face, and knew instantly he was a hater, not a lover.  He held the jar up with a kind of screwed up nose and then let it go, dropping it into a bin – a metal bin, no less – and I still hear that clanging sound as it hit the bottom and rolled around a bit.  He even made eye contact with me as he was doing it - the bugger!!  My heart dropped and I worried all the way back to America that someone was going to take it out of the bin and take it home!  How very dare they.
 

 

But then there's this:

Ha, so there M. airport security man, you didn't get all my Marmite goodies.  My yummy crisps were still in (bascially) one piece by the time I got home!  And you can bet I will enjoy every crumb!

Beans Means Heinz

Last night I had a wonderful tea.  I had baked beans on toast.  Not just any old baked beans – curried baked beans.  Heinz Curry Beanz!  Who could ask for more?  It took me right back to my childhood.

Now, I had never had Heinz curried beans before so this was a treat.  I had recently found them in a local shop and I was so excited.

 

I poured them into the saucepan and they looked kind of funky… very dark, not at all like the Heinz baked beans I remembered.  Obviously I had to lick the spoon and they were, yes I’m going to say it – Awful.  I felt like a traitor.  How can I not like curried baked beans?  They are Heinz Baked Beans, and they are curried – who could ask for more?  I felt as though I was losing all that is British within me.  *sigh*

Oh, and they had raisins in.  It took me right back to those awful school dinners when it was curry day and you had to pick the raisins out of that slop they said was curry, but clearly wasn’t.

A very English tea

But, I couldn’t bring myself to throw them away, after all they were Heinz Baked Beans.  The more I ate, the more I realized they weren’t so bad.  I did, in fact, eat the lot, even mopping up the sauce with my toast.   By the time I was finished, I think I had convinced myself that I liked them. I probably won’t buy them again, but I was an experience (to say the least).

  

Did you ever find something you had craved since moving from England only to find you don’t actually like it?