Lunch, Glorious Lunch

OK, it's a toss up between grilled cheese and peanut butter and jelly . . . with every variation imaginable for both.

From Nancy:

"Ooey Gooey Buttery Sloppy Grilled Cheese on honey wheat berry bread with a slice of tomato, accompanied by heavily peppered steak fries and some tangy dill pickles.  No contest."

From Craig:

"Peanut butter and jelly with Fritos and a dill pickle.  And it must be eaten in a specific order."

And there was grilled peanut butter and jelly.  Grilled peanut butter, honey and bananas.  Peanut butter and marshmallow.

Grilled cheese with tomato soup was very popular.  (I have to admit, I had it for lunch the day I read it.  It sparked a huge craving.)  And I can't wait to try grilled cheese with organic baby food sweet potatoes.  My friend Kristen swears by it.

Egg salad was popular.  "Packed on a bicycle, on pumpernickle, with a pickle."

Bacon lettuce and (only fresh) tomatoes.  Has to be on whole wheat.  (Everyone got so demanding that all sandwiches be done exactly as God intended.)

I think maybe the strangest entry was Doc B's mayo and sugar sandwich, however he redeemed himself with the tasty sounding hot dog and Welch's grape juice.

Then there were the odd bunch of submissions.  Liverworst and mustard??  I don't think so. And I have to admit that the Irishman in me had to Google "conpollo."  I know enough Spanish to know it means "with chicken," but I wasn't sure what was with chicken.  Turns out it is just rice.  I can tell you that most mothers barely turn out a PB&J, much less whipping up some rice and roasted chicken.

Chicken soup of course had a high ranking.  We all seem to associate that with being sick.  It is the most popular sick-kid lunch.

All of my Midwestern readers were not impressed with the Californians who commented on the blog that they like "fresh salad, fruit, and leafy greens."  We do have a west coast image to maintain, but I will tell you that one of those came from my nephew Patrick in Chicago.  So there.

And I end with, hands down, my absolute favorite entry.  It was from my niece who completely surprised me with a lunch that she said my sister would make for her daughters.  She put different colors of food coloring in bowls of milk and had the kids paint the bread.  Then she would make them into grilled cheese "works of art."  And it would work for french toast as well. That is the most creative childhood lunch I have ever heard of.  The blue ribbon goes to my sister Eileen!