It's What's Between

Today we look at Black Forest ham and its application in a sandwich setting. Growing up, I ate a lot of Black Forest ham. My mom liked to buy that and baby Swiss cheese for sandwiches, which in retrospect, seems extravagant for an elementary school lunch. But I appreciate the exposure to these more nuanced deli items — they probably broadened my palate more than your standard Oscar Meyer and Kraft fare. To tell the truth, I can't explain what differentiates Black Forest ham from your average ham, except that I like it better. It seems a little spicier and more, I don't know, hammy. Its wiki page says Black Forest ham is seasoned with "garlic, coriander, pepper, juniper berries and other spices," cured, then smoked at exactly 77°F with "fir brush and sawdust" from the Black Forest. Although very little of that sounds appetizing, Black Forest ham's black, crusty rind tastes great. I guess the fine people of the Schwarzwald know what they're doing....

After years of waffling , I finally took the dive and purchased a bottle of Kewpie mayo. Kewpie mayo's premium price and disturbing packaging had previously prevented me from buying it, but Grub Street blogger Ian Knauer's Flavor Ammo post about it convinced me to give the baby-themed mayo a chance. For the unfamiliar, Kewpie is a popular Japanese brand of mayonnaise that's often found in gourmet specialty stores, such as Eastern District in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. It's also currently available for 10 bucks on Amazon . The package features a standing baby that could easily serve as a homicidal doll in a horror story. Adding to the unease brought about by the package, the mayonnaise comes in a bag. I can't be alone in my belief that a bag is a completely inappropriate container for mayonnaise. Because of these setbacks, Kewpie mayo takes some getting used to. Now that I've come to terms with the unsettling packaging, I've probably topp...

That's what I would do if I were in New York this weekend, by eating a corned beef and cabbage panini from 'Wichcraft . Serious Eats makes it look pretty delicious on their A Sandwich a Day column , saying it's basically an Irish Reuben. I like the sound of that. Failing a trip to 'Wichcraft, I'd still like to eat something Irishy tonight. Can anyone think of an appetizing sandwich that's either green or prominently features potatoes (or both)? Because I can't. Maybe I'll just get Chick-fil-A instead. In any case, in honor of St. Patrick's Day, here are two Irish things of note: Above: Corned beef and cabbage in non-sandwich form from a Dublin "tapas bar." Below: A hilarious episode of the How Did This Get Made podcast featuring Kumail Nanjiani.

You'd better believe Coco knows his sandies. Mexican cheese? Yes. Gravy? Yes. Fiber? Why not? Behold "The Conan."

Good cheese, good meat, good bread, good condiments. That is winning in its truest sense. A bit of history, first. The have good prosciutto here, which is a hammy meat I've come to enjoy a great deal. The first time I encountered prosciutto was at a fancy pizza place in Denver. I ordered it with the pronunciation "pro-SQUEE-toe" and was harshly corrected by the waitress. I never said it like that again. But I do refuse to over-pronounce it like Giada De Laurentiis . I maintain that it's "pro-SHOOT-oh" and that any Italiany flair above and beyond that sounds pretentious. As much as I loath 'mericanism , I maintain that it's our right, nay duty , to 'mericanize non-English words. I'll allow that homage is pronounced "oh-MAAge;" I'd hope you'd allow the courtesy that guacamole is "guak-a-MOLE-ee." Anyway, if you want an excellent sandwich made from high-grade cheese and meat, you can find one at Eastern District...

It seems like months since I've updated the old Sandyblog, so let's have at it, eh? Have I had some wonderful sandwiches since our last post? Most definitely yes. I've spent a lot of time in Philly, meaning I've eaten lots of cheesesteaks. Did you know? In Philadelphia, one must eat at least one cheesesteak per month, lest they be excommunicated. William Penn said that once, and it was seconded by Benjamin Franklin -- hence the italics. Italics aside, this "law" remains true to this day. Although not formally enforced by the official police, local Philadelphians will sense your disloyalty if you stop eating cheesesteaks and physically eject you from the region, most likely depositing you in New Jersey. Protip: One can fool Philadelphians by eating 400% of one's normal intake of cream cheese. Locals may at first suspect you, but will probably leave you alone if you give off a powerful cream cheesy aroma. The point? There is none. I've eaten ...

This post penned by friend-of-sandwiches @lauren816 , of Bucks County, Penn. Thanks for the guest contribution! Have you eaten a sandwich recently? Want to review it for the blog? Have your people talk to my people, and by that I mean email or tweet or whatever me. First of all, this is my first blog post in a very long time, and most definitely my first blog post relating to sandwiches, so go easy on me, sandwich-people. Don’t get me wrong, I love sandwiches ... many of them at least, but I never thought about blogging about them. Of course that was before I was introduced to this blog by owner/editor @alexheadrick . So, after eating a panini at my first office lunch outing in about a year, I felt I could finally provide a decent sandwich review that just might be blog-worthy. My group wanted to go to an old favorite, Houlihan’s , where I would have gotten the best baked potato soup ever, but as fate would have it, our beloved Houlihan’s at the end of the road in Warring...