Redartz: Hello folks! Another week is underway, one which began here in the US with Father's Day, so I hope all you Bronze age dads out there had a fine one. Mine included a visit with my youngest grandson, so it was a good day indeed.
And now, we turn to our topic of the week. Or more precisely, we turn to you for the topic. So, stretch that imagination, pique that curiosity, and plumb the depths of your mind for the seed of a topic which can grow into a tree of discussion! And let's hear it for mixing those metaphors...
18 comments:
When you make a sandwich do you add anything to it? Any condiments, sauces, relishes or garnishes?
What do you add to a sandwich to make it more tasty?
Whoops-- wasn't lookin' to be the first guy in the Virtual Break Room today-- I hadn't given a lick of thought toward a potential topic. (And thus, may not come up with a very good one, so DO feel free to over-ride or supplement with another, eh?--)
BUT-- having only very recently binge-watched BREAKING BAD, and having loved UMBRELLA ACADEMY once I re-started watching it with my wife ('cuz I'd turned it off after about 5 minutes the first time, when watching alone, thinking "enh-")-- it occurred to me that I've always had a tendency to either knee-jerk reject a lot of "popular" entertainment media (comics or television or genre literature or films) w/out even seeing them first, OR giving up on them after the briefest taste--- and THEN I rediscover them much later on, and find that they were actually my favorite thing ever. Discworld, Breaking Bad, the modern Doctor Who, Grey's Anatomy, Lost, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, PG Wodehouse/Jeeves & Wooster. . . Shakespeare. . . these are all examples.
So, the question: What are similar instances, across a broad spectrum of media/genres/entertainments, where you eschewed or rejected something like this upon first exposure- or with NO true taste-test at all- and then returned to it later to discover that it was in fact your personal BEST THING EVER--? (The happy conceit is that there can be an unlimited number of "Best Things Ever" for any one individual in this discussion---)
HB
D'oh-- and while I was typing away, Colin J sneaked in with a culinary question that's right up my alley.
Mayonnaise, Colin. Heaping slathers of it. (Although Miracle Whip would be my own preference-- sort of a nearly-mayo condiment with a lot more artificiality. We wuz raised on it as kids. But my wife loathes it---). Unless the sandwich has either peanut butter or some sort of tomato sauce spread on it, I'm not gonna be able to eat it w/out mayo, no matter how good it may be. Heck, I STILL find myself craving that simplest of all childhood sandwiches: Two slices of bologna (baloney) on two mayo-smeared slices of white bread. We don't eat cold-cuts anymore, mind you, so this will remain forever in the land of memory. . .
HB
HB, I do sincerely apologize - it's very frustrating when you suggest a topic and then discover somebody got in first while you were typing (it's happened to me too).
I need to think about your question but something that immediately comes to mind is a song - THE REFLEX by Duran Duran. I absolutely loathed Duran Duran and when THE REFLEX first came out I instantly hated it but the more I heard the song the more it grew on me until, dammit, I thought it was a masterpiece and it made me reconsider my view of Duran Duran.
Colin and HB- well done guys! I didn't sneak in an extra question this week, so you two took care of it !
For Colin, I'd say cheese (I know, not a condiment but I put it on everything). But HB's answer reminded me of a forgotten favorite of my youth. Cheese and mayo on white. My grandmother, and then my mom, would make those regularly. Usually with Velveeta. Hey, it was the late 60's..
HB's question: Actually, I have an inherent tendency to automatically disdain many suddenly popular phenomena. Yes, sight unseen. But like your question notes, a change of viewpoint follows. For instance, I was very skeptical of trying some great tv shows due to their popularity. Seinfeld, Frasier, Big Bang Theory all met my jaundiced eye at first. But later I was hooked, and deeply. That'll teach me to judge a book by the cover... :)
Question 1: I like to use mayonnaise, sparingly, and also mustard, either the 'normal' kind or Dijon, also sparingly. That's main because I really like to pile on the other stuff, like sandwich meats, cheese (more than one type if available, i.e., cheddar, jack, Swiss, Gouda, etc.), onions, tomatoes, lettuce, or instead of lettuce, cucumbers or green and red peppers and so forth. One thing I will put on in heavier doses, if available, is deli fresh salsa - yes, I often like to use it as a spread instead of a dip. Same goes for ranch dressing now that I think about it...
Question 2: Well, going back to my very earliest days as a comics reader, back when my age was expressed in single digits, I picked up lots of random stuff off of the spinner racks, but I very specifically avoided: the X-men, Conan and anything that looked similar to my mind - that included the Defenders for a while. Later, of course, when I gave X-men a chance it became my absolutely favorite title for many years, and I also became quite the fan of Conan and all of his sword-wielding brethren and sistren.
For CJ: Now that we are sort of veganish we use sprouted grain bread. It tends to fall apart for sandwiches. The point being we don't make them hardly but for peanut butter and such. Al that said, I do like to add honey or bananas to that! For a normal sandwich though, I do like pickles or the little gurkins!
For HB: Bowie - generally speaking. Though well know for our generation, he never had "super star" sales / chart penetration if you look at the Billboard sales. Then one day a met a Bowie fanatic and, at least, found I could put together a 120-minute cassette of stuff I liked!
And I have been giving Abba more of a listen as of late, due to the discussions on Steve Does Comics blogs, lol. Not a raving fan but listened to 100 times more the past months than in my lifetime.
I think I've tried every sandwich topping in existence, even fruit - a cheese sandwich topped with a tinned pineapple ring is delicious. I've just finished a jar of redcurrant jelly which was lovely with chicken sandwiches.
On an unconnected subject - has anyone heard of "yacht rock"? I'm currently watching a two-part BBC documentary about yacht rock which is music by the likes of the Doobie Brothers, Hall & Oates and Toto released from 1975-85. The documentary examines both the music and American history from that period. Part One covered the '70s and Part Two (due to be broadcast tomorrow night) covers the '80s.
Sometimes I think "Yacht Rock" is a genre classification (and an awfully vague one at that) that was fabricated simply so that a group/artist wouldn't have to suffer the indignity of labeling themself "Soft Rock". 'Cause, man, "Soft Rock" just SCREAMS out, "Next stop: Muzak!"
Pablo Cruise, Steely Dan. . . probably Fleetwood Mac? I'd put Jimmy Buffet smack at the top of that list, except I seem to recall someone in the past (my wife?) VEHEMENTLY objecting to the very idea. Buffet is apparently some other genre, I guess?
Also, when these artists were really big, and dominating the pop-radio airwaves in the late 70's through the 80's (at least, the non-disco contingent), I don't recall the term "Yacht Rock" being used to identify them. That seems like a relatively recent categorization. 'Zat sound right, folks?
HB
HB, the aforementioned documentary says that the phrase "Yacht Rock" appeared around 2010 so it is indeed a very recent categorization.
I can see why many people do, but I just can't think of the Doobie Brothers as a soft rock band - especially after I saw them in concert in the late '80s during a reunion tour. Even with the Michael McDonald stuff interspersed into the set, there was nothing soft about that show...
As for Jimmy Buffet, didn't he proclaim that he belonged to his own genre, gulf & western?
My topping of choice would be bacon. A restaurant nearby offers a peanut butter burger (with crunchy or smooth PB), and you can add bacon to it. I even heat up the bacon pieces they sell in the salad section to put on my peanut butter sandwiches. Obviously, peanut butter runs a close second for me in topping choices.
As far as things returned to with a greater appreciation. For TV, I would have to put Breaking Bad on that list for sure. I sort of lost interest during the first episode and ended up getting back into it in the last season, which led to much binge watching. Music-wise, I'd have to say probably Miles Davis. I tried to listen to him in college and didn't get it. Best way to get him is to start at the beginning, which is what I did some ten years later.
Red, what kind of cheese do you like? I buy cheese every week but I mainly stick to two kinds - English cheddar and French brie. I've tried all sorts of cheeses but I prefer the cheddar and brie.
And I've recently discovered croissants - I'd been aware of them for decades but never tasted any. I assumed they tasted like boring white bread but they are much tastier than that. They are so nice that I eat them without adding any butter or filling :)
On HB's question: I never liked the art of Pablo Marcos back in the day but nowadays I have a huge fondness for ol' Pablo. He drew lots of covers exclusively for Marvel's British weeklies so we Brits had a lot of exposure to his artwork. Funny how time and nostalgia changes your opinion :D
@Graham-- yep, Breaking Bad is SOLIDLY in that column for me as well. Heck, the premise itself sounded so bleak & unresolvably dark to me that I never tuned it in in the first place. Then I up & decided to watch the first episode on a whim on Netflix late this past winter--- and I could NOT get away from it-! Geeze, it's agonizing and painful and bleak as hell-- but it is so flippin' well-done. . .
Ooo-- and back to sandwiches-- this kinda fits into both topics: When I was a legendarily Picky-Eater youth, you could've beaten me with a frying pan, and not gotten me to eat a tomato. Then somehow, late in my teens, I discovered how good they were on Whoppers--- and have never turned back. There are FEW sandwiches that aren't improved with the addition of a tomato. Even a lame off-season grocery store specimen. . .
HB
Colin- Regarding cheese. I have the somewhat unusual affliction of a total lack of sense of smell. This also manifests in a somewhat deadened sense of taste as well. Consequently I generally dislike mild flavors, as they just don't register. So I like a nice sharp cheddar, or a strong swiss...
Colin: mayo is a must! But some spicy, stone ground mustard is also a nice touch, depending on the sandwich. Also, Italian dressing is a great addition to a cold cut.
HB: I rejected the big grunge bands (Nirvana, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, etc) immediately until I really listened to the music and found that I loved so many of them.
--Joseph
In my opion, any sandwich, from luncheon meat to egg salad to burgers, is enhanced with cheddar or baby Swiss.
Bacon is a "givin", as it seems to virtually go with everything.
Being a product of my environment, I, like most of my fellow "yinzers", slather Heinz ketchup on everything. That's not my top condiment of choice, though. I'm a huge fan of Heinz 57. It's delicious on beef, pork, chicken & deep fried fish. It's spicier than just regular ketchup.
Piles of thinly sliced onions, raw or grilled, are a plus also. Pickles of different varieties work with a few sandwiches. Sloppy Joes are great with those, as well with the aforementioned cheeses and bacon. That's a kick-ass Sloppy Joe.
You put the pickles on the bottom of the bun, then ladle on steamy-hot thick Sloppy Joe meat, then a couple slices of cheese on top, the cheese will help hold the meat to the sandwich. Add bacon & sliced onions, then chow down!
You'll never wanna eat another plain Sloppy Joe again!
Hokey Smokes, Bullwinkle!
Just thought that you UK folks may not know what a Sloppy Joe is.
Basically it's thick all-meat chili in a bun.
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