Food!

[LadyElysium]

I'm a sucker for "stodgy" food that really fillls you up and that has the canny ability of making your waistline expand just by looking at it. One of my favourite things to make is "Toad in the Hole", a classic British dish with sausages (I wrap mine in bacon) snuggled nicely in a yorkshire pudding (a pancake-batter-type-creation).



I usually serve it with roasted potatoes and smothered in gravy.



*drool*

[Starmongoose]

God, I havn't had Toad in the hole since I was a kid. Making me want to have it again though.

[MeshGearFox]

Toad in the Hole sounds like some sort of gay X-Men Evolution lemon.

[CastNuri]

Okay, might have mentioned this before and can't be arsed to check. Nasi Lemak is the Malaysian national dish (although this is debatable, depending on which part of Malaysia you're from). It's also crazy spicy and delicious if made well. It's one of the few Malaysian dishes not always shared with Indonesian culture.



That's chili sambal paste mixed with dried anchovies on the top. It's sometimes served with a handful of peanuts, for more crunchiness. People have nasi lemak for breakfast, lunch or dinner-- personally think rice is too heavy for a morning meal but some people like a big breakfast.

[Starmongoose]

Today I got an AWESOME package in the mail. A couple of my American friends sent me my copies of the zine we write together, as well as, (after some begging) some cheese in a can! Cheese in a can has fascinated me for a loooooong time, since you see it a lot in American TV shows but can't actually buy it over here. (That I am aware of, I imagine there is a specialty store for American people living in the UK)

So yeah, my friends sent me some (cause they are the most awesome girls, ever) and I immediately tried it. It got off to a rocky start as the first thing I noticed as the flavour was "American Flavor", now, I have no idea what Americans taste like, because cannibalism isn't on my list of things-to-do.



The second challage involved how to actually make the cheese come out. As the nozzle was something I was unfamiliar with and couldn't get to work. Apparently I have to squeeze down hard and inject the cheese into whatever I want. I find this most strange and alien.

The final trial was how you are actually intended to EAT the cheese. I didn't know what to do, so I did the decidedly British thing of "When all else fails, put it on toast"

[MeshGearFox]

You do realize that nobody in America has actually consumed aerosol cheese since the 90s right.

[Starmongoose]

You do realize that nobody in America has actually consumed aerosol cheese since the 90s right.

This is unimportant to me. It was such a big novelty, I had to try it.

[Azrael]

The way to eat it is to spray the cheese directly into your mouth.

Also, American cheese is actually a type of cheese that is some kind of wannabe cheddar look alike, but generally tastes like crap.  I can stand White American, but that's about it.  Then again, I really don't like cheese all that much and avoid it most of the time.  I did find out that Cheez Wiz (basically what you ate out of the can) is how an authentic Philly Cheesesteak is made.  I was a little disappointed.

[CastNuri]

(That I am aware of, I imagine there is a specialty store for American people living in the UK)

Yes!! My sister and I buy American stuff from a couple of sites (that have stores either in London or close to town). Not sure if they sell cheese in a can but they have most of the American groceries that were popular in Malaysia while we were growing up.

http://www.americansweets.co.uk/index.asp

http://www.cybercandy.co.uk/aaasmt/

[Dincrest]

My favorite way to order a cheesesteak is provalone "wit."

[Marshmallow]

Authentic Philly cheesesteaks just kinda gross me out. Squeezy Cheese, like Spam, is something so grossly unappealing that it almost works as an appetite suppressant (however, my mom did send me a can of Spam while I was in Japan as some kind of cruel joke, and honest-to-God it's not that bad fried up with onions and potatoes).

When I think of hometown comfort food though, I think about food from my parents' restaurant, namely the crabcakes. As a kid I wasn't nearly as into them, preferring other seafood dishes, but recently I've been on a huge crabcake kick, and I always want one when I'm there.

[GrimReality]

Oh, come on guys! Easy Cheese kicks ass! Sure, I've probably had it only once or twice in the past 10 years, but it's just so open to possibilities! Kinda like a spray can of cool whip. Of course you inject that stuff right into your mouth. Duh!
Easy Cheese works best with crackers. I liked putting it on Doritos. Flavor explosion!
I am a big cheese guy. I like going to Trader Joes(anyone else have these stores?) and exploring the cheese section. A good extra sharp cheddar can make my week.

[Marshmallow]

Real cheese is way more awesome than the processed crap though. I won like $25 in scratch-off lottery tickets once and spent my winnings on a cheese party. St. Andre is damn tasty, as is Gruyere, and my favorite but hard to find Red Dragon.

[Kevadu]

I did find out that Cheez Wiz (basically what you ate out of the can) is how an authentic Philly Cheesesteak is made.  I was a little disappointed.

Woah, woah, woah!  I can't believe I missed this comment earlier as it needs to be corrected.

It certainly is true (unfortunately) that there is a large Cheez Whiz faction in Philly, but it is far from universal.  There is also a sizeable contingent of sensible people who make their cheesesteaks with provolone.  There is an American cheese faction too, but let's ignore them.  The point is that the war is still very much ongoing.

Also keep in mind that Philly cheesesteaks have been around since the 1930s, but Cheez Whiz wasn't even invented until the 50s.  You really can't argue that it's more 'authentic' even if it has become common now.

So do not give up hope!  Have faith and some day provolone with triumph!

[Starmongoose]

I would like to report that the cheese in a can (cheez wiz, whatever you call it) made me a little ill. So I don't think I will be trying it again any time soon :P I'll stick with normal cheese in the meantime.

Also, thanks for the links CastNuri, I figured there would be something like that around!