Deep Fried Jam Sandwiches - Almost!
For dessert, he had a Deep Fried Jam Sandwich, and waxed lyrical about it on this very blog, a short while later. From time to time (usually when passing Treacle) there are happy reminiscences of said dessert, and also from time to time, I think, "Hmmm, I'm sure if I wanted to I could make that - and it would cost a lot less than £5.95". Yep - that's how much it is. OK so they fancy it up a bit with posh ice-cream, and make it with posh brioche (although I'm pretty sure that back in the day when we were there it was just regular bread).
But the thing is, I'm kind of a bit scared of deep frying. I have done it on several occasions, successfully and without any boiling oil disasters, but it still freaks me out a bit. Particularly now that Mini-M is often not far away. And while I'll happily eat stuff deep fried by others, doing it myself kind of freaks me out on the health front.
Hence the fact that I made almost deep fried jam sandwiches. As in, the thought was there, the end result was similar, but there was no actual deep frying involved!
The picture is also rather pathetic, as it was taken on my phone, on Christmas morning, just before it was eaten up for breakfast!
Almost Deep Fried Jam Sandwiches (serves 2 for an unhealthy breakfast, lunch or pud)
- 4 slices bread (I used bog standard medium sliced wholemeal - but you could get fancy if you wanted)
- 2 tbsp jam (raspberry in this case, but again, whatever takes your fancy)
- 2 eggs
- 100ml chocolate milk (I used Oatly chocolate oat milk, but regular chocolate milk would work perfectly)
- 1 tbsp oil for frying
- Icing sugar for sprinkling.
Lay out your bread, and put 1 tbsp of jam each on 2 slices. Spread it all the way to the edges - this should be a generous layer - add more if you're using giant bread or are a jam fiend.
Sandwich with another slice of bread, and press down gently to stick. Cut in half - you should now have 4 half jam sandwiches. Find a dish that you can fit your four half sandwiches into laying flat. Crack your eggs into it, and pour in the chocolate milk, then beat with a fork to combine and break up the egg. Take your sandwiches and lay them in the eggy mix. After a few minutes, turn them over, then leave for about half an hour so that they soak up lots of the chocolate eggy mixture. When you're ready to eat, heat the oil in a large frying pan on a medium heat. Add the sandwiches (I did it in two batches to allow for in-pan-manoeuvring) and fry for about 4 mins on each side, until the outsides are golden brown. This will give the insides long enough to cook. If you press it, it will still feel squidgy even when it's done, because it's filled with jam! Put onto a serving plate, and allow to cool for a few minutes (biting into boiling jam is not lovely!) then dust with icing sugar before tucking in. Mmmmm.
Maybe he was just being nice, but my better half actually said these were nicer than their inspiration! Definitely less scary to make :o)
