It’s hot here in Texas, and no-cook meals reign supreme. I had to make an appetizer to bring to a “gathering” last week, and made a plate of turkey, provolone, and pesto sandwiches. I cheated and bought the pesto from Central Market — no complaints. The rolls came from Royal Bakery, located at 1841 Fairview, which I had not previously been to.
This bakery supplies rolls to practically every restaurant in Houston that makes po’ boys. I couldn’t wait to go in and see what other baked goodies were waiting for me. But guess what? They only had po’ boy rolls and they sell something like 9000 each day. Beautiful, soft, pillowy po’ boy rolls.
Here’s the camera-shy owner, handing me my change. (The rolls set me back 60 cents a piece — what a deal!) I’ve since discovered that they sell a few other things — giant hamburger rolls and some other sandwich rolls, but po’ boy rolls are their bread and butter, so to speak.
And here’s my sandwiches:
And speaking of no-cook meals, last year we had an unprecedented drought and a record number of days of triple-digit temperatures, which resulted in burn bans across the state for most of the year. Our son is a Boy Scout, and this meant no campfire cooking on campouts. To help the unimaginative, Boy Scouts of America sent around a list of no-cook meal ideas, mostly stuff that no self-respecting scout would eat (at least not in front of other scouts) — including a “candle” recipe (which actually came from a Betty Crocker kids cookbook in the 1970s) that involved a pineapple ring, a banana, some Miracle Whip, and a cherry. When assembled, the dish looks likes this:
Just like a candle, right? Who among you is brave or insane enough to serve this to a bunch of 13-year old boys? And why would you want your food to look like a “candle” anyway? Apparently, though, “candle” food is more popular than I realized. Check out these other “candles,” for example:
Hot dog snake candles?
I was surprised I did not find a bagel/hot dog “candle,” but I suppose it’s reassuring to know that there is a “candle” floor below which you dare not venture. Needless to say, I won’t be adding any of these “candle” recipes to my permanent recipe file. Or my temporary one.