I’m sick today. Stomach flu. Yes I’m starting today’s food blog off like this.
I’m bored. There’s nothing to watch on Netflix. My eyes are too tired to read my friends new book that I’m dying to read. My stomach can’t handle my eyes scrolling through my food feed. I feel so weak I should be trying to sleep more, but I just can’t because everything hurts.
Do you know what’s even worse than that? I have dear old friends here for only 6 days, and today is their last day. Today was supposed to be our beach and cenote day, nice dinner, and games afterwards. Ug. Instead my friend is sitting alone at the pool reading.
Stomach flu is the worst.
It does give me time to blog. I didn’t want to do that either, but I’m going stir crazy so I should do something.
Many moons ago, when my family lived in Bolton, Ontario, we had an adorable little house that I did not then appreciate, but now often think of. We had beautiful Brazilian cherry-wood floors that stunned most people …. but left me hating them because they showed every speck of dirt and dog hair. We had a park right across the street, which sometimes would lead to me complaining about the noise of the neighborhood. It had only been lived in for about 10 months before we purchased it, so it still very much had that starter home look. Which I hate. I grew up spending a lot of time in Bloor West Village in Toronto, which, if you don’t know, is a beautiful, old, neighborhood in Toronto’s west end full of stunning little shops, old trees, and houses that had character. Tons and tons of character. No two houses were the same.
I love that.
Our house didn’t have character. So we worked on it little by little. I am no interior designer, I prefer food. I was so tired for looking for ‘the perfect chandelier’ for our front entrance. Don’t get me wrong, I was happy when I found it, but it just didn’t give me the same amount of joy as cooking and baking and feeding people does.
We had an open concept design on the main floor, and the best part of that was that I could see the television from the kitchen. I could watch all those afternoon cooking shows and get inspired and actually cook along with these dazzling television personalities.
One afternoon, before my son arrived home from school, I saw this idea on television. Don’t ask me which show because I can’t remember, but I started copying this idea right away. My kids loved it and I don’t even remember who gave it it’s name, but in our house, they are simply and affectionately called ‘dippers’.
The idea is simple: take whatever combination of peanut butter and jam, or bananas, or Nutella, almond butter, or whatever you use, make a sandwich, treat it like french toast, cut into pieces, and dip into warm maple syrup.
Easy peasy.
Why had I not posted it before now? Because this recipe truly belongs in the ‘Ugly Delicious’ movement.
I’m not gonna lie, I get a little irritated when I see a beautiful pot of pasta or salad with the #uglydelicious attached to it. It is in no way ugly or I doubt was hard to photograph.
But have you tried to photograph bread that’s oozing out peanut butter out of the sides because the food you make isn’t just to photograph, it’s to eat? The bread isn’t evenly browned because that’s not real life either. I tried and gave up so many times.
Then I figured I’d have to give in and just do my best. Yes, it’s not the prettiest plate of food, but it will change your weekend breakfasts with the kids and even an after school snack to new levels, just as it did in our house.
Oh, and thanks to everyone on Instagram who provided me with some name ideas. I chose my friend Catherine’s idea because I felt it suited this dish perfectly. I’m not surprised she’d come up with a good name, she’s always been funny and witty, and actually has her own food account on Instagram ‘fabulousfoodiefun’. Make sure to check her out.
In our house though, these will always just be called ‘dippers’.
And now I need a nap.
INGREDIENTS:
- 4 slices of bread of your choice
- options for sandwich: peanut butter, almond butter, Nutella, bananas, jam, whatever your little one likes best
- 1/3 cup milk
- 1 egg, beaten well
- 1 TAB cinnamon
- vegetable oil for frying
- maple syrup for dipping
DIRECTIONS:
Make two sandwiches with whatever ingredients are popular in your house. In a flat dish, combine milk, egg, and cinnamon.
Heat a medium skillet with a little oil over medium heat. Dip sandwiches on each side into milk mixture, and then transfer to pan. Fry a few minutes on each side, or until nicely browned. Remove to cutting board. After a minute or two, cut into strips and serve with a little maple syrup to dip into.
Serves 2.
ORANGELOLLS 