SPAMoff

Yep, that's steam wafting off the succotash.

Still, it was not a huge success. There were only three entries. Not many daring people out there when it comes to SPAM.

Anastasia's was actually good. She hid her SPAM inside a coconut rice. It really was yummy. Mine wasn't bad but I wouldn't say it was good either.

I even bought the low sodium Spam but .... there's only so much you can do to hide that taste.

I tried to cook my entry in blocks. I had hash browns, my version of succotash (without the corn and benas) yeah, I know, that's succotash but I use tomatoes and zucchini, garlic and a few other ingredients to make my version, and then the SPAM.

So, my meal was to be multi-layered, you start on the bottom with the crispy hashbrowns, then you add the succotash and top it off with a few tidbits of SPAM.

Everyone thought I should have tried to hide the SPAM inside something.

But, I guess I've been watching too much CHOPPED - I was thinking that wouldn't be embracing the ingredient ;D

Oh well, you can't win 'em all.

Spamwich

Here it is! A giant SPAMwich.

It was similar to a hotdog. Highly processed, a lot of salt but not bad tasting. The only problem I had with the SPAM was the texture. It was soft and mushy . . . sort of. More like the texture of tofu than meat. But it honestly wasn't bad inside the sandwich, with lettuce, tomatoes, and pickles piled on top.

We cooked it in the cast iron pan, just like Mom used to do. And it wasn't so pretty but it wasn't bad either. Kind of like a square hamburger patty.

We sliced it thinly and just fried it up. It could have been spiced up a little too, if we had thought about it (but no more salt--that was already in strong supply). We were more curious about it's true taste. So, I took a big bite of the sandwich and was pleasantly surprised. It was pretty good.

Then, I had to take a bite of the SPAM without all the condiments and veggies to find out for sure. And all alone, I didn't like the texture so much because when I took a bite and tasted it inside the sandwich, I didn't even notice the soft texture. I don't think I would buy it again because it's so high in sodium but I won't think so badly of it either. Kind of like a chili dog sort of night: quick, easy and inexpensive but not so very healthy.

So how bout you? Any foods from your childhood that you'd like to taste again?

SPAM

And I'm not talking about the unwanted email . . . well, maybe I am. SPAM was something I loved as a kid. I remember Mom frying Spam in the cast iron griddle and I would snack on it before she even got it into a sandwich. Of course growing up in a house with nine kids, I loved any food...well, except for liver and split pea soup. I wasn't very picky. If I would have been, I would have been hungry, more often.

I was telling my son how I haven't eaten Spam in over 40 years and the next night guess what I found on the kitchen table?

Yep, a can of Spam. My son said he'd make dinner with it. So tonight we'll be having Spam sandwiches.

Of course this innocuous meat was first introduced in 1937 by the Hormel company to help feed folks during World War II. And in 2007 the seven billionth can of Spam was sold.

Some people make fun of it as being a mystery meat source, ubiquitous and unknown, just like those strange emails that you find in your inbox every morning.  Yep, that's exactly where the name for those unwanted literary missives comes from: SPAM.

So, after tonight I'll be able to tell you what I think of Spam, cause to be honest I can't remember what the stuff tastes like.

I know it has a s gelatinous glaze, or aspic, that covers the meat. This gooey glaze forms from the cooling of meat stock. So, I'm pretty sure you'd want to eat the stuff before tasting it. But I'll let you know what I think of it now...nearly 40 years later. But, like I said, I used to love the stuff.