Spuebens

Hello my Hy-Vee friends!

Happy Spring and happy April Fool’s Day. As much as I like to have fun in the kitchen, I do take food seriously. I work hard every day to share my passion for what we eat so when there is one food that is consistency deemed the “clown prince” of food, I will quickly jump in to defend it.

What food is that you may ask?  It is spam and it is delicious. Its been a joke since the infamous Monty Python’s flying circus spam skit in the 1970's but spam was not always a joke. In World War 2 spam played a crucial role overseas. Since it was cheap, easily transportable, had a long shelf life and is nutritious, it fed our troops in their time of need.

And it is tasty of course. Whether it is diced up and mixed into pineapple fried rice, topped with sushi rice and wrapped in seaweed or made it into a delicious sandwich (see below), spam is certainly no joke.

Spuebens

All you need:

1 can of spam, sliced thin

2 tablespoons butter

4 slices marble rye bread

1/2 cup sauerkraut

4 slices Swiss cheese

1/4 cup thousand island dressing

All you do:

1. Preheat a large skillet or griddle on medium heat. Place 1 tablespoon butter in the skillet and add the spam.

2. Cook until spam is slightly brown and crispy. Set aside. 

3. Lightly butter one side of bread slices. 

4. Spread non-buttered sides with thousand island dressing.

5. On 2 bread slices, layer 1 slice Swiss cheese, 1/2 the spam, 1/4 cup sauerkraut and second slice of Swiss cheese.

6. Top with remaining bread slices, buttered sides out. 

7. Grill sandwiches until both sides are golden brown, about 5 minutes per side.

8. Serve hot and enjoy!

Praise the Lard,

-Chef Alex